Oversea-Chinese Banking Corporation (OCBC) has announced that Chief Executive Officer Helen Wong will step down at the end of December, concluding a four-year tenure that marked a period of record profitability for Singapore’s second-largest lender. The bank confirmed on Friday that Tan Teck Long, currently Head of Global Wholesale Banking, will succeed Wong from January.
Tan, a Singaporean national, joined OCBC in 2022 from DBS Group Holdings, where he held the role of Chief Risk Officer. Under his leadership, OCBC’s wholesale banking division has delivered a compound annual growth rate of approximately 25% in profit over the past three years, according to the bank’s statement.
Wong, 64, made history in April 2021 as the first woman to lead a major Singaporean bank. Her tenure was characterised by a strong financial performance, with OCBC reporting record profits for three consecutive years. In February this year, she announced the bank’s largest capital return programme to date, amounting to S$2.5 billion (approximately US$1.95 billion or RM8.3 billion) through special dividends and share buybacks over two years.
OCBC Chairman Andrew Lee noted that Tan’s appointment followed a “rigorous global search” and was unanimously approved by the board. Tan, 55, is expected to bring continued strategic leadership to the group, particularly given his track record in wholesale banking and risk management.
Wong’s retirement was announced in the same week that OCBC’s longstanding effort to take full control of regional insurer Great Eastern Holdings fell short. Despite owning nearly 94% of the company, OCBC failed to secure sufficient shareholder support for a delisting proposal. Wong later stated via LinkedIn that the bank had entered the meeting “already satisfied” with its existing stake and does not intend to make another offer for Great Eastern “in the foreseeable future.”
Throughout Wong’s tenure, OCBC’s shares rose by 43%, outperforming the 29% gain in the benchmark Straits Times Index. However, the bank’s stock performance has trailed that of DBS, which also underwent a leadership change earlier this year.
Wong, a seasoned banker originally from Hong Kong, spent 27 years at HSBC Holdings, most recently overseeing its Greater China operations. She joined OCBC shortly before the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic, having initially been appointed to lead its global wholesale banking business.
Despite calls from analysts during her leadership to pursue strategic acquisitions and deploy excess capital, OCBC was perceived as more conservative in expansion compared to rivals DBS and United Overseas Bank, both of which have been more active in regional asset growth.
-Bloomberg
