Introducing the Alliance
The PAA Difference (A-S-I-A)
Leverage multi-sector relationships to catalyse and scale Asian solutions for global challenges
Access venture funding and impact investing opportunities through our global network and ecosystem
Mobilise sustainable, outcomes-focused financing through blended finance models
Cross-pollinate Asian and global solutions through co-funding, collaboration and learning opportunities
Our Leadership
Chairman
Mr Lim Boon Heng is the Chairman of the Philanthropy Asia Alliance. Mr Lim was appointed Chairman of Temasek Holdings on 1 August 2013, after having served as its Director since 1 June 2012.
Mr Lim is the Chairman of NTUC Enterprise Co-operative Ltd. He was previously a Cabinet Minister within the Prime Minister's Office. Mr Lim’s career spans the private and public sectors, having led Singapore’s National Trade Union Congress, and having served as a Member of Parliament (1980 to 2011) and Cabinet Minister for Trade and Industry. Before entering the public sector, Mr Lim spent a decade at NOL (Neptune Orient Lines).
Director
Ms Janet Ang is the Chairman of SISTIC.com Pte Ltd and an Independent Director of the Bank of the Philippine Islands (BPI) Ltd and Swire Shipping Pte Ltd. She is also a Senior Advisor of the RGE Group.
Ms Ang serves as Chairman of the Public Transport Council, the NUS-ISS and the Singapore Polytechnic Board of Governance. She is also the Deputy Chairman of the Singapore Business Federation Foundation and a council member of the Singapore Business Federation and the Council of Board Diversity. Besides serving on several other statutory boards and CLGs, she is also Singapore’s Non-Resident Ambassador to the Holy See and a former Nominated Member of the Parliament of Singapore (Feb 2021- July 2023).
Ms Ang was awarded The Public Service Medal in 2019. She was also awarded the Singapore Computer Society IT Leaders Award – Hall of Fame in 2018, the NUS Distinguished Alumni Service Award in 2015, the NUS Business School Eminent Alumni Award in 2014 and most recently, the NUS Outstanding Service Award 2021. Janet graduated with a Bachelor of Business Administration (Honours) from the National University of Singapore, and is an alumni of the INSEAD International Directors Program. She is married to Mr Anthony Cheah Kia Heng and they have four daughters.
Director
Mr Dominic Barton is Chair of Rio Tinto and the Chair of LeapFrog Investments, an impact-investment firm focused on emerging markets. He is also a Senior advisor and partner at Radical Ventures a leading AI investment firm.
Mr Barton completed his role as the Ambassador of Canada to the People’s Republic of China in 2021, appointed by the Right Honourable Prime Minister Justin Trudeau in 2019. He was a Senior Partner at McKinsey & Company and served as Global Managing Partner for 3 terms from 2009 to 2018.
Mr Barton was previously Chair of Teck Resources, from 2018 to 2019, and, in 2019, served as a Non-Executive Director at Singtel. He brings a wealth of global business experience, as well as a deep insight of geopolitics, corporate sustainability, and governance.
Director
Mr Børge Brende is president of the World Economic Forum (2017). Previously he was the Norwegian minister of Foreign Affairs, Minister of Trade and Industry, and Minister of Climate and the Environment.
He served as Deputy Chairman of the Norwegian Conservative Party as well as MP. He was also Vice-Mayor in his hometown Trondheim. He was Chairman of the UN Commission on Sustainable Development and Secretary- General of the Norwegian Red Cross. He was board member of Statoil and the Norwegian School of Economics. He has been the Chair of Mesta, Norway’s largest contracting group in the area of road and highway maintenance.
Mr Brende is a member of the Advisory Council, Harvard International Negotiation Program, the China Council for International Cooperation on Environment and Development (CCICED), the Strategic Committee of Sciences Po, and is currently on the board of the Bilderberg Meetings.
Director
Mr Edmund Koh is a career banker with more than 30 years of experience in the financial services industry in Singapore and the Asia Pacific region during which time he garnered a deep understanding of Asian markets and developed a strong track record in leading and building successful businesses in Asia.
A strong advocate of talent development and community involvement; he is always in the front line of providing mentoring to juniors, knowledge sharing and nurturing the next generation of leaders.
Mr Koh is a board/council member of various committees including the MAS Financial Centre Advisory Panel, the Wealth Management Institute, the Asian Bureau of Finance and Economic Research, and the University of Toronto International Leadership Council. He holds a Bachelor of Science in Psychology from the University of Toronto, Canada.
Director
Mr Desmond Kuek is the CEO of Temasek Trust.
Prior to this, Mr Kuek was UBS Global Head of Sustainable Finance and Chairman of UBS Optimus Foundation Singapore from 2019 to 2022. He was President and Group CEO of SMRT Corporation Ltd from 2012 to 2018; and Permanent Secretary, Ministry of Environment and Water Resources from 2010 to 2012. He served in the Singapore Armed Forces in his earlier years, and was appointed Chief of Army from 2003 to 2007, and Chief of Defence Force from 2007 to 2010.
Mr Kuek holds a Master of Arts (Engineering Science) from Oxford University, and a Master in Public Administration from Harvard University.
Director
Ms Christina Ong is Chairman and Senior Partner of Allen & Gledhill. She joined the Firm as a Partner in 1987, and has for many years headed the Financial Services Department. Her areas of practice include banking, securities offerings, securities regulations, investment funds, capital markets, and corporate finance.
Ms Ong is a member of the Corporate Governance Advisory Committee (a standing committee established by The Monetary Authority of Singapore) and the SGX Catalist Advisory Panel. She also sits on the Board of Directors of Singapore Telecommunications Limited, Oversea-Chinese Banking Corporation Limited, Hongkong Land Holdings Limited, and is an Authority Member of the Civil Aviation Authority of Singapore.
Ms Ong regularly reviews and provides feedback on legal and securities developments, particularly amendments to Singapore company and securities law and the listing rules. Ms Ong holds a Bachelor of Laws (Second Upper Honours) from the University of Singapore. She is a member of the Law Society of Singapore and the International Bar Association. She was called to the Singapore Bar in 1975.
Director
Ms Mildred Tan is the Chair of Singapore Totalisator Board (Tote Board) and Chair of Singapore University of Social Science (SUSS) Board of Trustee; Co-Chair for Council for Board Diversity (CBD) and Co-Chair for Global Future Council on the Future of Philanthropy for Climate and Nature, World Economic Forum. She is also Board Director of National University Health System (NUHS), Wing Tai Holdings and AIA (Singapore).
In addition, she sits on the Council of Presidential Advisers as a Member.
Ms Tan was conferred Justice of Peace in 2008 and was awarded PBM (Public Service Medal) in 2007 and BBM (Public Service Star) in 2014 for outstanding community service by the Singapore Government. She was nominated Member of Parliament in Singapore from 2009 to 2011.
Director
Dr Ya-Qin Zhang is Chair Professor of AI Science at Tsinghua University, and Dean of Institute for AI Industry Research of Tsinghua University (AIR). He was the President of Baidu Inc. from 2014 to 2019. Prior to Baidu, Dr Zhang was a Microsoft executive for 16 years with different key positions, including Managing Director of Microsoft Research Asia, Chairman of Microsoft China, and Corporate Vice President and Chairman of Microsoft Asia R&D.
Dr Zhang was elected to the Chinese Academy of Engineering (CAE), the American Academy of Arts and Sciences (AAA&S), the Australian Academy of Technology and Engineering (ATSE), the National Academy of Inventors (NAI), and the Euro-Asia Academy of Sciences. He is a Fellow of IEEE and CAAI. He is one of the top scientists and technologists in digital video and AI, with over 500 papers, 60 granted US patents, and 11 books. His original research has become the basis for start-up ventures, new products, and international standards in digital video, cloud computing, and autonomous driving.
He serves on the Board of Directors of four public companies. He is on the industry board of United Nation Development Program (UNDP), and AI global council of the Davos World Economic Forum. He is the Chairman of the world’s largest open autonomous driving platform “Apollo” alliance with over 200 global partners. He has been an active speaker in global forums including APEC, Davos, United Nations, and Bo’Ao Asia Forum.
Chief Executive Officer
Seok Hui is CEO of PAA. Prior to this, she was CEO of the Singapore International Arbitration Centre (SIAC). During part of her tenure at SIAC, she served concurrently as the first CEO of the Singapore International Mediation Centre (SIMC). She is a former member of the Board of SIMC.
Over the years, Seok Hui has worked in Singapore and Hong Kong SAR with local and international law firms as a corporate, mergers and acquisitions, and securities lawyer; and has also served as General Counsel at multinational corporations.
Seok Hui is a graduate of the London School of Economics, qualified as a barrister; and is admitted as a solicitor in Singapore, Hong Kong, England and Wales.
Head, Programmes & Impact
Corinna currently holds the position of Head, Programmes & Impact at PAA. Prior to this, she headed the secretariat that organised the Singapore Summit, an annual convening of global and regional C-suite executives and thought leaders to discuss geopolitical, social and technological developments; and their impact on economic growth, financial markets and industries.
Corinna has also worked in the Communications and International Departments at the Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS), where as the Head of International Finance, she supported MAS' participation at international meetings to develop and coordinate financial and regulatory policies to strengthen the global financial system. Earlier in her career, she was with the Singapore Airlines in public affairs and marketing.
Corinna holds a Masters of Business Administration from the Nanyang Technological University, and a Bachelor of Arts (Second Upper Honours) from the National University of Singapore.
Director, Programmes & Impact
Shumin currently holds the position of Director, Programmes & Impact at PAA. Prior to this, she was with an international non-profit organisation focused on circularity, where she led the design and implementation of several large-scale flagship programmes.
She spent over a decade at the Singapore Economic Development Board (EDB)in various roles that involved partnering with multiple stakeholders to develop Singapore’s Energy & Chemicals and Electronics industries. She was also the Director for Taiwan and Hong Kong operations, where she worked with companies on their internationalisation strategies and investments into Singapore.
Shumin holds a Masters in Business Administration from Liverpool John Moores University, and a Bachelor of Chemical Engineering from the National University of Singapore.
Director, Knowledge & Insights
Sharon currently holds the position of Director, Knowledge & Insights at PAA. Prior to this, she was Senior Vice President at GIC, focusing on change management for the workplace transformation programme, and leading the corporate sustainability efforts of the sovereign wealth fund.
Sharon also served as adjunct faculty at the Singapore Management University’s School of Social Sciences, teaching undergraduate psychology. She began her career in people development and corporate strategy.
Sharon graduated with a Bachelors of Arts and Masters of Science in Psychology from Yale University, and obtained her PhD in Psychology from the Singapore Management University.
Director, Legal & Compliance
Grace currently holds the position of Director, Legal & Compliance at PAA. Prior to this, she was part of the Singapore legal team supporting the investment and development business units of a leading international property and investments group with operations in Australia, Asia, Europe, and the Americas.
Grace has extensive experience in supporting global businesses from various industries, including technology, banking and real estate, to manage their legal, compliance and commercial risks, alongside their objectives for growth and profitability within Asia Pacific and Japan.
Grace holds a Bachelor of Laws (Second Upper Honours) from the National University of Singapore, and is admitted as an advocate and solicitor of the Supreme Court of Singapore.
Director, Corporate Development
Ryan currently holds the position of Director, Corporate Development at PAA. Prior to this, he was the Chief Operating Officer of several early-stage companies, where his responsibility was to run operations, capital raise, as well as grow top and bottom lines.
Ryan was also previously the Head of Mergers & Acquisitions with StarHub; and prior to that, he held various corporate development roles, in addition to being a management consultant.
Ryan holds a dual Executive MBA from UCLA’s Anderson School of Management, where he was named a John Wooden Leadership Fellow, and the National University of Singapore. He also has a Masters in Quantitative Methods from Columbia University, and a Bachelors of Arts in Economics and Government (High Honours) from Dartmouth College.