Timothy Beardson, who has just died in Jersey at the age of 69, founded and became the majority shareholder and Chairman of Crosby Securities. The Stockbroker and Boutique merchant bank became the largest independent investment bank in Asia. At its height Crosby employed 650 staff in 27 offices in 17 cities in 14 countries, from New York to Beijing. In 13 years of trading, Timothy oversaw an increase in annual transactional volume to US$20 Billion.

Crosby was the first international investment bank to open in Thailand and Malaysia followed by China in 1989. Crosby was the only foreign bank invited to participate in the working party to set up the Shanghai Stock Exchange. The bank advised governments throughout The ASEAN world as well as the U.K. and the USA.  Other global institutions eager to develop in the same markets were given political, strategic, economic and investment advice by Crosby’s research teams on a regular basis, before deciding themselves to enter the same financial markets.

When Timothy sold the bank in stages between 1996 and 1999, based on the scale of the bank’s operations and the valuation on sale, he was described by the media as “the leading English entrepreneur in Hong Kong during the latter half of the twentieth century". Timothy became an almost annual fixture when lecturing at universities across the world, in particular at business Schools such as Oxford, Yale and Beijing. His opinion was frequently sought by TV and Radio shows . The more so when he relinquished the exacting daily work of running his bank and wrote the highly regarded book, “The Stumbling Giant: The threats to China’s Future “ published by Yale University Press in 2013. The book focuses on whether China will replace the US as the next superpower, and the challenges that face China  in the 21st century which has been a topic that has come to the fore in the last four years. The Times chose the Stumbling Giant as one of its “Books of the Week” in the same year of publication.

Timothy Beardson was born on 28th July 1951. He spent his early years around the Southampton area of Hampshire before moving to The Helford in Cornwall.  His father was a member of the naval liaison group with the Special Boat Service (seeing action around Greece in World War Two) and who spent many months away at sea during Timothy’s formative years. This did not hinder Timothy’s academic achievements. He won a County Scholarship and College Exhibition to read History up at Christ Church, Oxford and at a very early age compared to many of his contemporaries. He used his time up at Oxford to engage in robust political debate, he viewed his constituency as broader than that of Oxford.

On leaving Oxford Timothy joined the investment firm Gartmore and soon found that his mental abilities would lead him to Hong Kong where he excelled in research and developing a new client base. This encouraged Timothy to expand his career and he was invited to join the Hong Kong conglomerate Sun Hung Kai (SHK)  as a senior stockbroker. Here he helped the chairman, Fung King Hey, obtain international recognition as a stock trader. In consequence, Timothy helped to organise the first ever Chinese Stockbrokers In and Out and Bankers Blanket Bond to be placed in Lloyds of London. This led to Timothy opening up SHK’s first US Office in New York. After a few years there, Timothy returned to Hong Kong and sought wider fields in which to practice. He briefly worked at the Hong Leong Conglomerate before setting out his own stall and founding Crosby in 1984.

Timothy Beardson had an extraordinary gift in finding the right people who shared his similar desire for success. Crosby was soon expanding at an extraordinary rate, the team found themselves buying “ Seats ‘ on stock exchanges that had hitherto been closed to foreign investment. Famously the American International Group joint ventured in a number of the Seat purchases, especially in Thailand, and the Wallenberg family trust was an original investor in Crosby. The consequent research teams were in immediate demand by all the major global financial markets and Crosby teams were constantly approached to work for competitors. Timothy saw this threat and steadied it by selling 30% of Crosby in 1993 to Societe Generale who went onto buy the remaining shares in different blocks until finally absorbing Crosby in 1999.

Away from his work, Timothy was the most generous of hosts, especially kind to those with whom he had studied or worked alongside, as his own career blossomed. His house parties in the South of France were legendary . The success of this hospitality encouraged him to buy a property in Oxfordshire that would prove suitable as a place to entertain his many friends, by now legion, whom he met through international conferences such as The World Economic Forum where he became a regular attendee and speaker . When Timothy succeeded Sir David Akers-Jones, the former Chief Secretary and Acting Governor of Hong Kong, as Chairman of the China Oxford Scholarship, he generously allowed many of the Chinese scholars the same opportunity to enjoy the environment and hospitality that the Beardsons gave to their own friends at Hailey House.

Guests would often find up to 50 other fortunate recipients of Timothy’s hospitality at anyone time with activities to suit all . Sundays would begin with breakfast and invariably a service conducted by a visiting priest , more often than not an Archbishop, Bishop or Dean of an International Anglican Cathedral, or alternatively a mini bus would be laid on to escort members of the house party to Oxford for a Mass and a curated tour of the Ashmolean before returning for lunch, where fine Clarets were always the host’s preferred choice of wine. Many of Timothy’s circle of friends will recall his acute sense of humour. Famously, on one occasion arriving at an immigration desk in Paris , the Immigration officer opened Timothy’s passport and noticed a staggering array of visa stamps , he looked at Timothy and asked what it was like to live in the Third World, to which Timothy replied “ I don’t know, I have just arrived “.

Timothy married rather late in life due to the pressure of running his own business , his Wedding gift to his wife Clair was an apartment on the Isle St. Louis in Paris (later transferring to the Isle de la Citie).Their joint ability to entertain so many of their friends and fellow international conference delegates never abated. A mark of their joint success is that over the years many of their fortunate guests would continue to recognise the same domestic team . Timothy Beardson was also a Patron of Outward Bound in Britain from 1997-2002 and his charity extended  to the Anglo Catholic cause for which he was made an Honorary Fellow of Old Sarum College in Salisbury. Throughout his life Timothy continued to be interested in coaching young entrepreneurs to succeed in many fields but principally in the financial sector.

Timothy expected loyalty and he handsomely repaid it when he knew his expectations were rewarded.

Timothy, who was resident in Hong Kong for over 40 years, leaves behind a son Peregrine who is still at school and his wife Clair, nee Davison, who he married at Dorchester Abbey in 2000.

Obituary written by Robbie Lyle, former COSF UK Trustee and life-long friend of Timothy Beardson for 50 years.