Wee Cho Yaw to step down from UOI board, Wee Ee Cheong to succeed as chairman

UNITED Overseas Insurance (UOI) on Tuesday (Feb 28) announced a slew of changes to the board and management, with Wee Cho Yaw to step down as chairman on Apr 14. His son, Wee Ee Cheong, a director since 1991 and chief executive officer (CEO) of UOB, will succeed him as chairman on the same date.

Hwang Soo Jin, a director on the UOI board, will also be stepping down on Apr 14. Wee Cho Yaw and Hwang co-founded UOI, and will be designated chairman emeritus and director emeritus respectively by the board.

New directors will be joining the board on Mar 1; Winston Ngan as an independent director and Leong Yung Chee as a non-executive, non-independent director. Ngan counts being a Chartered Professional Accountant as part of his credentials, and retired in June 2020 from Ernst & Young as a partner in the financial services audit department. Leong is the head of blockchain and digital assets at UOB.

UOI managing director and CEO David Chan will be retiring on Mar 31, after 33 years with the company. Chan succeeded Hwang in 1996 and will remain on the board and be redesignated non-executive and non-independent director from Apr 1.

Andrew Lim, general manager of UOI, will succeed Chan on Apr 1. Lim has more than 30 years of experience in general insurance.