Monks beefs up APAC leadership as it sharpens regional growth strategy

Monks has expanded Nirvik Singh's leadership remit to cover Asia Pacific alongside Europe, the Middle East and Africa (EMEA), as the S4 Capital-owned agency strengthens its regional leadership.

Singh will serve as CEO of marketing services for EMEA and APAC, reporting to Bruno Lambertini, CEO of marketing services at Monks. He recently stepped down as a non-executive director on the S4 Capital board to take on the EMEA leadership role.

Alongside the expanded remit, Monks has appointed Ash Smith as executive vice president for APAC, effective 13 November 2026, and Fay Denis du Peage as managing director for Australia and New Zealand, effective immediately.

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Smith will report to Singh and focus on driving regional growth, strengthening client partnerships and expanding Monks' product and solutions capabilities across APAC.

He joins from Tag, a Dentsu company, where he served as chief product and solutions officer for JAPAC, overseeing talent, products and technology, including the company's AI and innovation agenda.

He previously served as managing director for Southeast Asia, building client partnerships and integrated solutions across the region.

Smith brings more than 18 years of experience across Australia, Europe, China, Hong Kong and Southeast Asia, working across product development, client solutions, innovation and business leadership.

Singh brings more than 35 years of industry experience, most recently serving as global chief operating officer and president international at Grey Group. During his career, he has worked with brands including Procter & Gamble, Coca-Cola, Volvo and Haleon.

Meanwhile, du Peage will be based in Sydney and report to Smith, leading Monks' growth and market development across Australia and New Zealand. She will focus on strengthening the local offering and bringing together the agency's creative, media, data and technology capabilities.

She previously served as senior vice president of media for APAC, where she helped strengthen Monks' regional media proposition and integrate data, technology and media.

In a statement, Singh said Smith's experience across client leadership, product, solutions and innovation would support Monks' efforts to bring together creative, media, production, data and technology capabilities across the region.

Smith added that agencies needed to move beyond working in silos to solve client problems, bringing media, creative, production and data together to help brands identify new ideas and growth opportunities.

Lambertini said the appointments would strengthen Monks' ability to connect capabilities and drive growth across its markets. He also thanked Kenny Griffiths for his leadership and contributions to the agency.

The appointments follow a series of leadership changes at Monks across Southeast Asia. The agency appointed Scott McBride as managing director of Southeast Asia earlier this year, following the departure of Munas van Boonstra. 

Based in Singapore, McBride reports to Griffiths, who was then executive vice president for APAC, and works closely with Scott Spirit, chief growth officer, to lead regional growth and client transformation.

McBride joined from adtech company Hoppr, where he led demand and partnerships, and previously held senior roles at Creatively Squared, Shuttlerock and IPG Mediabrands.

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