NewsmakersFebruary 8, 2024

Singapore’s GIC Announces Leadership Appointments

The Sovereign Wealth Fund will see 8 senior leaders change roles or step down.

Reported by Matt Toledo

GIC Private Ltd., Singapore’s $770 billion sovereign wealth fund, announced a shuffling of its senior leadership on Wednesday. All management changes will be effective April 1.

“With this refreshed leadership bench, I am confident that we can continue to pursue excellence in our operating and investment capabilities, and navigate the investment environment,” said Lim Chow Kiat, CEO of the GIC, in a press release.

The following leadership changes were announced:

Sam Kim, deputy chief operating officer, will be appointed COO and will join the group executive committee, a management body within the fund on which many of the fund’s CIOs sit;
Bryan Yeo, CIO of public equities, will become deputy group CIO and will oversee the fund’s integrated strategies group, which seeks to expand the fund’s public and private investments into less conventional opportunities;
Mark Ong, head of Asia Pacific equities, will become CIO for public equities, replacing Yeo;
Goh Chin Kiong, deputy CIO of real estate, will become CIO for real estate, succeeding Lee Kon Sun, who will retire from GIC; and
Boon Chin Hau will be appointed as deputy CIO for infrastructure.

The fund also announced that several senior leaders will step down but remain part of the fund’s global leadership group. Tay Lim Hock will step down from his roles as deputy group CIO and COO, and Lim Kee Chong will step down from his role as deputy group CIO and director of the integrated strategies group.

Between 2018 and 2022, the GIC was the world’s largest sovereign wealth fund by capital deployed, but it was dethroned by Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund, according to Global SWF’s 2024 annual report. According to the report, the GIC reduced its investment activity by 37% in volume and by 46% in value in 2023, although the fund received record inflows of $144 billion from Singapore’s central bank.

The fund announced in July 2023 that it had achieved a real rate of return of 4.6% during the 20-year period that ended March 31, 2023.