UOB as it looked 80 years ago

AS part of its 80th anniversary celebrations, United Overseas Bank (UOB) has "dressed up" its Main Branch at Raffles Place by giving it the facade of its original headquarters, the Bonham Building.

The bank first opened as United Chinese Bank on Oct 1, 1935, to offer banking services to the merchant community in Singapore. For more than three decades, the Bonham Building served as the bank's headquarters, until the construction work on UOB Plaza at Raffles Place began in 1970. As a building with significant historical and heritage value, the modern-day UOB Plaza has been recognised by the National Heritage Board as one of the 100 historic sites in Singapore.

The picture above shows UOB staff in front of the bank's "dressed up" Main Branch, which will remain "under wraps" until the end of the year.