Big Three Bank Leadership in Singapore’s Next Decade
Two of Singapore’s big three banks enter the city-state’s next decade with new bosses while one could potentially see a successor outside of the family for the first time.
As Singapore enters into the seventh decade since its founding in 1965, its top local lenders – DBS, OCBC and UOB – known as the big three banks, will also start a new chapter. Most notably, DBS and OCBC will kick off with new CEOs while Singapore’s last family-run bank, UOB, mulls succession to its third-generation boss Wee Ee Cheong.
The coming decade is arguably the most consequential one in recent memory, especially for Asia. On one hand, it is filled with potential opportunities driven by factors such as strong regional economic growth, a wealth boom and transfer that is fuelling financial services demand and technological advancements in AI or blockchain. On the other hand, there are also risks, ranging from geopolitics to demographics.
Whether or not Singapore’s big three banks will capture the opportunities and mitigate risks will be highly dependent on how its leaders steer the ship.
DBS: Front Office Veteran
Tan Su Shan (Image: DBS)
On March 28, Tan Su Shan officially succeeded 16-year CEO Piyush Gupta as the new head of Singapore’s largest local bank. Tan has more than three decades of banking experience, including 15 years at DBS leading its two customer-facing divisions – consumer banking and wealth management as well as the institutional banking group (IBG). Previously, she was Morgan Stanley’s Southeast Asia head of private wealth.
Tan’s extensive experience in private banking and wealth management will serve the bank well as the region continues to mint new riches and the world undergoes a historic intergenerational transfer. Her time spent in IBG will be useful when capitalizing on so-called «one-bank» opportunities involving cross-divisional collaboration.
She is well-versed in tech, having played a pivotal role in major digitalization initiatives, such as DBS digibank, PayLah! and iWealth, while also implementing an API suite for real-time digital banking and driving AI-related efforts. From 2012 to 2014, she was also a nominated member of Singapore’s parliament, lending to political acumen that could come in handy in this era.
OCBC: Balance of Business and Risk
Tan Teck Leong (Image: OCBC)
In contrast, OCBC has picked a new leader with more balanced experience between business and risk. On 1 January 2025, Tan Teck Leong will succeed Helen Wong who has decided to retire for family reasons.
Also with over 30 years of experience, Tan currently leads OCBC’s wholesale banking business which has achieved a three-year CAGR of 20 percent in income and 25 percent in net profit. Prior to that, he was the chief risk officer at rival DBS, where he started his career in 1993. He also held other risk management roles at DBS such as senior credit approver, and the establishment of a loan workout unit to help restructure weak credit cases.
Aside from universal risks, Tan’s expertise could be relevant in other areas for OCBC. For example, the bank has a significant presence in Hong Kong, mainly via its 2014 acquisition of Wing Hang, where there are headwinds due to ongoing commercial property risks. There are also continued growth worries in mainland China where the bank has operations and a sizeable stake in Bank of Ningbo.
UOB: Inside or Outside the Family?
Wee Ee Cheong (Image: UOB)
For UOB, the headline leadership question is whether or not it will appoint a boss outside of the Wee family for the first time ever since its founding in 1935. Wee Ee Cheong, 72, is the bank’s third-generation CEO after his late father Wee Cho Yaw, and late grandfather and UOB founder Wee Kheng Chiang. He has made numerous public comments about succession, hinting that he was open to outsiders.
There is no shortage of next generation family members. According to an obituary published after Wee Cho Yaw’s death, he has 16 grandchildren and 22 great grandchildren. However, many are involved in businesses outside of financial services, such as F&B or art. Wee Ee Cheong’s son, Wee Teng Chuen, is one of the members with relevant experience, previously working in UOB’s corporate banking division.
«Yes, if the family members are interested, they’re more than welcome. But I think they need passion, they need love, and they need the desire to be part of the team,» UOB’s CEO previously said at a briefing in 2024.
