Khan was speaking at the bank’s annual Asia Wealth Forum held in Singapore on Jan 12. The forum was attended by over 2,000 clients and featured guest speakers, including Justin Trudeau, the former prime minister of Canada, and Pershing Square Capital Management chair and CEO Bill Ackman.
For most investors, 2025 was a year that ended better than expected. There was a lot to worry about, whether it be the impact of President Donald Trump’s “Liberation Day” tariffs or the geopolitical uncertainties that came from Israel and Hamas or Russia and Ukraine. All those concerns proved unfounded as markets outperformed expectations. The S&P 500 recorded 17.9% in returns last year, on the back of the AI boom.
“Last year was quite surprising. Nobody expected China to outperform the US market. Nobody expected the extent of this gold run. We expected geopolitical drama. We expected uncertainty, but we were presented with a whole new world,” says Iqbal Khan, co-president of UBS Global Wealth Management and president of UBS Asia Pacific.
