It has been announced that Dilhan Pillay Sandrasegara will succeed Lee Theng Kiat as Chief Executive Officer of Temasek International Pte Ltd, the wholly owned management and investment arm of its parent company Temasek Holdings Pte Ltd, with effect from 1 April 2019.
Meanwhile, Mr Lee will take over from Ms Ho Ching as Chairman, Temasek International, on the same date.
Mr Pillay will be responsible for the role of Temasek as an active investor and shareholder as CEO of Temasek International, as well as overseeing the operations of the firm, and the organisation of its talent and resources to deliver sustainable long term returns for Temasek.
As Chairman of Temasek International, and concurrently an Executive Director of parent company, Temasek Holdings, Mr Lee will be overseeing the development of Temasek as a forward looking institution, and will work closely with Mr Pillay on commercial strategies and portfolio matters.
Mr Pillay has held various leadership appointments in Temasek since 2010, including leading its Investment and Portfolio Management Groups, and overseeing the US and Americas market teams.
The 55-year-old man also initiated and led the Enterprise Development Group, to build new longer term growth engines for the firm through innovation, and to seed or develop new enterprises with the potential to be domestic, regional or global champions.
Mr Pillay has also been an active participant in various public policy consultations and engagement forums, drawing on the legal experience from his earlier career in corporate law, mergers and acquisitions, corporate governance, and his extensive business network across the world.
Prior to joining Temasek, he was Managing Partner of Singapore law firm WongPartnership LLP.
Mr Pillay served on the boards of the Singapore Management University, Singapore Institute of Legal Education, Changi Airport Group (Singapore) Pte Ltd, the National Research Foundation in Singapore, Singapore Innovate Pte. Ltd. and certain subsidiaries of Temasek Holdings (Private) Limited.
He is also a member of the Future Economy Council and the Financial Centre Advisory Panel of the Monetary Authority of Singapore.
He graduated from the National University of Singapore with a Bachelor of Laws and obtained a Master of Law from the University of Cambridge.
Incoming Chairman of Temasek International, Mr Lee, announced the succession at a staff briefing this afternoon, saying, “I am pleased today to let you all know that Dilhan will be taking over from me from 1 April 2019. Let me also say that he has the full support of our senior team, and the Temasek Holdings Board.
“We have been working for some time to build a strong leadership bench in Temasek, and I know Dilhan will bring his vision and passion for our mission to his new role. I look forward to working with Dilhan in his role as the new CEO.”
According to Mr Lee, Mr Pillay has the ability to connect the dots, a keen eye for details and practical solutions, and a boldness to break new ground in anticipation of longer term trends.
“He also has the support of his peers and colleagues to take the lead and reshape Temasek to be more ready to invest into a better, smarter and more connected world, and in a new environment with cyber threats and technological opportunities,” he added.
Speaking in the event, Mr Pillay said that the Temasek of today is a very different one to that which he joined almost a decade ago.
“Today, we have a more global portfolio and diversified workforce; and we have actively transformed our portfolio from its Singapore origins, to one which is growing strongly with Singapore and Asia. In the recent decades, we have also tapped on longer term opportunities outside Asia,” said, adding that the world is much more connected now.
“I am fortunate that we have a team in Temasek with a strong sense of purpose and a commitment to integrity and excellence. These are built on the foundation laid by many generations of dedicated staff, including Ho Ching and Theng Kiat. I look forward to working together with the team to take Temasek into the future.” he said.
Commenting on the leadership appointments within Temasek International, Ms Ho Ching, CEO of Temasek Holdings, said, “Temasek needs to be ready for disruptive challenges and opportunities in the decade ahead. The demands on our three roles as investor, institution and steward have also increased in tandem with our portfolio growth, breadth and coverage.”
Ending his speech, Mr Lee said, “Our purpose is to deliver sustainable long term returns. This aligns well with our broader role as a trusted steward. By doing well as an investor and doing right as an institution, we create a capacity in Temasek to do good for our communities.”
In the press release, the company noted that Temasek’s portfolio has more than doubled from S$103 billion in 2005, to reach S$266 billion a decade later on 31 March 2015, anchored largely in Singapore and Asia.
It noted, that portfolio rose to S$308 billion by March 2018.
As at 31 March 2018, two thirds of the underlying exposure of the Temasek portfolio was in Asia – including Singapore (27%) and China (26%).
Meanwhile, outside Asia, 22% of the underlying portfolio exposure was to emerging technological trends and opportunities in US and Europe – up from 17% in 2015.
