KKR appoints new Asia public affairs head

Katz will continue to be based in Singapore, from where he will take responsibility for KKR’s public affairs and external communications across Asia Pacific, engage government stakeholders, and oversee the environmental, social and governance (ESG) aspect of the firm’s investment processes. He will also support individual portfolio companies as required.

Katz joined eBay as head of government relations for Asia Pacific in 2014 and started working solely on PayPal when the payments business spun off from eBay the following year. Before eBay, he spent more than three years with Visa, establishing the company’s government affairs function in Asia.

Between 1995 and 2008, Katz was a member of the US diplomatic service – working as a special assistant to two secretaries of state – and then served in the office of the US trade representative, latterly in Asia-focused roles. He relocated to the region in 2008 as senior advisor to the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) Secretariat.

"Constructive engagement with our stakeholders is more important than ever before given the increasingly complex business environment and the growing importance of environmental, social and governance considerations. We are pleased to welcome David and believe his expertise will be a tremendous asset to the firm as we look to build on our best business practices in Asia Pacific and in each market where we operate,” said Ken Mehlman, KKR’s global head of public affairs, in a statement.

Katz’ predecessor in the role, Steve Okun, was recently appointed ASEAN representative for EMPEA, a global industry association for private capital in emerging markets.

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