50 Years of Asia: Nestor Tan, BDO Unibank
9 May, 201950 Years of Asia: Kartika Wirjoatmodjo, Mandiri
9 May, 2019Euromoney, May 9 2019
Read the whole article here: https://www.euromoney.com/article/b1f9jcb5y2pqy4/wee-ee-cheong-modesty-for-survival
A common theme when Wee Ee Cheong talks about United Overseas Bank is what might be called modesty, or at least an absence of flamboyance.
“I don’t want to be loud,” he says, when talking about the bank’s expansion into other markets. “We just want to do what is the right thing for the customer. This is how we can survive in the long term.”
UOB is the Singaporean bank most closely associated with a dynasty: the Wee family. Wee Kheng Chiang founded it in 1935 to serve ethnic Hokkien clients in Singapore.
His son Wee Cho Yaw succeeded him as managing director in 1960, later becoming chairman, a role he still holds emeritus at the age of 90. Wee Ee Cheong, the third generation, succeeded his father as chief executive in 2007.
Does the family history help in taking a long-term view?
Wee stresses that UOB is a listed company not just a family dynasty: “But deep down, every time I go on a roadshow to meet some of my institutional investors… They know that the family put their money where their mouth is. We persevere. And we have a set of customers who are willing to take a longer-term view with us.”
Conservatism has some value. “There are so many banks that have over-expanded now,” he says. “This is why Asia is attractive. We try to have a disciplined approach.”
Full article: https://www.euromoney.com/article/b1f9jcb5y2pqy4/wee-ee-cheong-modesty-for-survival?copyrightInfo=true
