Singapore, 26 September 2016 – OCBC Bank has appointed Ms Elaine Lam Su Yen, 44, as Head of Global Corporate Banking following Mr George Lee’s retirement after 16 years with the bank.

In this new role, Ms Lam is responsible for OCBC Bank's corporate banking business which includes Wholesale Corporate Marketing, China Business Office, Real Estate, Global Commodities Finance as well as the Bank's corporate banking business in all overseas offices, with effect from 15 April 2016.

Ms Lam has over 20 years of corporate banking experience. She joined OCBC Bank 15 years ago as a Relationship Manager with the Wholesale Corporate Marketing unit.

She was appointed co-Head of Wholesale Corporate Marketing in June 2005, and became Head of Wholesale Corporate Banking in June 2006, a position she held for nine years.

In her previous capacity as Head of Wholesale Corporate Marketing, she was instrumental in deepening OCBC Bank’s corporate banking customer franchise and led the team to consistently deliver strong results. In 2011, she spearheaded the set-up of the regional Structured/Project Finance business to capitalise on the growing opportunities in utilities and infrastructure finance in the region. She also set up OCBC Bank’s China Office Business in 2012, which strategically positioned the bank to successfully capture the increasing flows from China into Singapore and the region.

Her professional experience prior to joining OCBC Bank includes corporate banking and relationship management roles in ABN Amro Bank and UOB Bank, as well as Pricewaterhouse Coopers as an auditor.

Mr George Lee, 63, was appointed Head of Global Corporate Banking in February 2012. He had joined OCBC Bank in July 1999 as Head of Capital Markets, bringing with him 33 years of prior experience in the financial services industry. Among several leadership roles during his tenure with the bank, he was made Head of Corporate and Institutional Banking in November 2001 and Head of Group Investment Banking in October 2002. He was promoted to Executive Vice President in October 2005.

Under his leadership, the corporate banking businesses in the core markets of Singapore and Malaysia were significant revenue contributors to the bank. Mr Lee’s other notable contributions over the last 16 years included the establishment of the bank’s investment banking capabilities in Malaysia and the Mezzanine Capital Unit. More recently, he oversaw the setting up of the Global Commodities Finance unit so that the increasingly diversified financing needs of traders in Singapore and the region could be better met.

Commenting on Ms Lam’s appointment, Mr Samuel Tsien, Group CEO, OCBC Bank, said: "I am pleased that Elaine has taken over the reins of our corporate banking business. This is one of our largest business divisions and is a global business. I have always emphasised the importance of talent development and succession planning, and am glad that this has continued to bear fruit. Almost all our senior management roles are filled by talents that were groomed internally. I am confident that Elaine – with her strong track record in corporate banking and experience in working with large corporates locally and globally, along with her strong leadership skills and proven management capabilities – will take our corporate banking business to new heights.

"George has been an invaluable member of our management team and I would like to thank him for his many contributions to the bank over the past 16 years. He is not leaving the OCBC family yet as he has been serving as an advisor to OCBC Malaysia. By sharing his wealth of corporate and investment banking experience and providing counsel to our business operations in Malaysia, George will help us further deepen our presence in this key market."

Ms Lam also serves in the Institute of Banking and Finance's Corporate Banking Sub-Committee and the Financial Industry Competency Standards' (FICS) Corporate Banking Working Group. She holds a Bachelor of Accountancy (Honours) from the Nanyang Technological University (NTU) and is an Institute of Banking and Finance Fellow (Corporate Banking).