David Devin of Lynas Capital found Hong Kong opened up a world of opportunity and an enviable lifestyle choice

David Devine, managing director and founder of boutique fund management house Lynas Capital, first came to Hong Kong in 1992 to visit his sister who had moved to the city. He liked the place so much he returned a few months later to live there himself - and he's never left since.
 
'I had been living in a dank suburb of London when I first came here and my sister was living in a flat on The Peak with her husband, who was one of the managers of Kai Tak airport. Believe me, it was easy to see how the life was better here!
 
Of course, coming to Asia and experiencing a new culture and surroundings played a part in my decision. But the move to Hong Kong also helped me to get on the right career path. At the time I had been working for the BBC as an accountant and had just completed my qualifications.
 
I was interested in the stock market and becoming a fund manager, but London is rather regimented compared to Hong Kong and it is hard to change careers. People tend to look at CVs and hire accordingly.
 
Within a couple of months of arriving in Hong Kong, I'd landed a job helping set up a new fund house with an American fund manager. At the time, it had no business and no money and I wore two hats - first as an accountant helping set up the company and systems to run it. Secondly, I acted as a fund manager picking the stocks across Asian markets to invest in. After a while, I was doing much more investing and a lot less accounting, which suited me as I love the challenge of meeting company executives and sniffing out tomorrow's big winners.
 
Onwards towards success

The company, Overlook Investments, became a success and is still going strong today. After a few years I planned to go it alone with my own company. But the move got delayed by the Asian financial crisis in 1997 which hurt Overlook's fund at the time, even though we were invested in quality small companies, not the then market favourites such as big, politically connected conglomerates which were guilty of the worst financial excesses.
 
At that time, it was impossible to persuade investors to put fresh money with a new Asian fund as they were smarting from their losses. It was also difficult to walk away from Overlook's investors then. I felt I had to try and make good some of their losses, which is what we did in the end.
 
I left Overlook in 2002 and rediscovered how efficient Hong Kong is if you want to set up your own business. There are specialists here who will help you create a company, there are the bankers, the lawyers, the stock custodians, all the people and infrastructure you need to get it all done with minimum fuss.
 
I chose to call my new company Lynas Capital after a favourite spot on the North Wales coastline near my hometown and set up my office in the Cheung Kong Centre in Central. Again the focus with Lynas is on small companies which haven't been spotted by mainstream fund managers but which have the potential to grow into big companies. We don't chase the markets, we just find a small number of good stocks, build up a position and then wait for the mainstream to catch on as well.
 
Geographical advantage

Hong Kong has great air links and a central location so it is a handy base for making trips around Asia visiting companies. In December alone I went to Thailand, China, Indonesia and Thailand again, with short stops back in Hong Kong after each trip.
 
Last year was the first full year of operation for our first fund. It went pretty well with our fund rising 8 per cent and we already have HK$286 million (US$38 million) under management. I'm pretty excited by the prospects for this year as we believe we have found some great companies at cheap valuations.
 
Hong Kong is also an exciting place outside work. I love water sports and like nothing better than throwing a wind surfer in the back of my SUV and driving to Stanley beach. It's also a lot of fun to hire out a junk and take a day trip with friends - and throw in some water skiing.
 
My children have lived in Hong Kong for most of their lives and they are happy to call it home, too. They are getting a good education through the English Schools Foundation and, because they are living in an international city like Hong Kong, they are getting a much wider perspective on life that I would have loved to have had as a child.'

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