GIC gets new CEO on Jan 1; group president Lim Siong Guan to retire

Singapore

THE Singapore sovereign wealth fund GIC will have a new chief executive officer (CEO) in Lim Chow Kiat, 46, from the new year.

He is now the group's chief investment officer and deputy group president, after having taking on the latter post only from April this year.

GIC Group president Lim Siong Guan, 69, will retire, and be appointed adviser to the GIC Group executive committee, also from Jan 1.

These were among the slew of changes the GIC announced among its top brass on Monday evening, a little over half a year since its previous shuffle.

The younger Mr Lim said: "As I take on this bigger role, I will continue to be guided by the values of our pioneers, particularly that of long-termism."

He joined GIC as a portfolio manager upon graduation in 1993, developed GIC's investment capability in corporate bonds and rose to head the fixed income, currency and commodities department.

He later oversaw investments and relationships in Europe, Africa and the Middle East. He was appointed president of the asset-management team in 2011.

Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong, who is GIC chairman, said of the elder Mr Lim, who has been group president since 2007: "Mr Lim's time at GIC coincided with an extremely challenging period for global markets. His leadership enabled GIC to work cohesively towards a shared and worthy goal - to steward and invest our foreign reserves wisely and prudently, for the benefit of present and future generations of Singaporeans."

The GIC also announced four other appointments, which will also take effect on Jan 1.

Jeffrey Jaensubhakij will be group chief investment officer. He will relinquish his current roles as deputy group chief investment officer and president for the public markets portfolio.

Lim Kee Chong will keep his current positions as deputy group chief investment officer and director of the integrated strategies group, but take on the job of president covering the Americas concurrently. He will be based in New York.

Tay Lim Hock will be appointed deputy group chief investment officer and take on the role of president covering Europe concurrently. He will be based in London. He will also be adviser on private equity and infrastructure, and relinquish his current role as president of the private equity and infrastructure portfolio.

Goh Kok Huat will continue as chief operating officer, with his concurrent appointment as adviser on real estate; he will relinquish his current role as president overseeing the real estate portfolio.

The investment functions and responsibilities of Dr Jaensubhakij, Mr Tay and Mr Goh as president of public markets, president of private equity and infrastructure, and president of real estate respectively, will be taken over by the five chief investment officers. They are Bryan Yeo for public equities, Liew Tzu Mi for fixed income, Choo Yong Cheen for private equity, Ang Eng Seng for infrastructure and Lee Kok Sun for real estate.

The titles of "president of public markets", "president of private equity and infrastructure", and "president of real estate" will cease to be used, said GIC.

The Sovereign Wealth Fund Institute has ranked GIC as the world's eighth-biggest state fund, and estimates that it has US$350 billion of assets under management.