Wing Tai makes board changes

PROPERTY and lifestyle company Wing Tai Holdings has appointed two new directors to its board, while saying goodbye to a long-serving one.

Wing Tai announced on Tuesday that it has appointed Guy Daniel Harvey-Samuel and Dr Zulkurnain bin Hj Awang(see amendment note) as non-executive directors to its board.

Mr Harvey-Samuel is currently serving as non-executive chairman of HSBC (Singapore) Ltd, having previously served as general manager, CEO of Singapore, at The Hongkong and Shanghai Banking Corporation Ltd. He will serve on Wing Tai's remuneration and nominating committees. Dr Zulkurnain was, until Nov 29, 2017, an independent non-executive director of Wing Tai Malaysia Sdn Bhd.

Wing Tai also bid farewell and paid tribute to James Lee Kim Wah who retired from its board on Tuesday, having turned 80 years of age.

Wing Tai's announcement described Mr Lee as having been with the company "from day one", serving as a manager in the company's appointed auditing firm and later being invited to join Wing Tai as a staff member.

Mr Lee served with the company for a total of 50 years, holding a variety of roles from finance to human resources to labour relations. He retired in 2008 as the group's finance director, but stayed on as its senior adviser and independent non-executive board director.

Wing Tai chairman Cheng Wai Keung said of Mr Lee: "James was the go-to man who was involved in every aspect of the business especially in its nascent years, and during the phrases of rapid expansion which established a strong foundation for the business. He was trusted by the founders, known and respected by government officials, business associates and the community at large."

Amendment note: An earlier version of this story incorrectly spelled Dr Zulkurnian's name as Dr Zulkumain, based on a misspelling in Wing Tai's press release. The article above has been revised to reflect this.