Janus Capital Group, the US fund manager, has opened an office in Singapore, intending to cash in on the estimated $900bn (€639bn) available assets in the fast-growing city-state amid strong competition from domestic and other international rivals.

The office will be managed by Benjamin Chang, who is co-head of Janus' Asia Pacific region excluding Japan. Chang joined Janus in 2004 from Merrill Lynch's Singapore office where he was a director.