Khoo Teck Puat

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Lore & Background

Khoo received his early education at St Joseph's Institution in Singapore in 1930, educated up to standard eight prior to his marriage at age 17. He began working at the Oversea-Chinese Banking Corporation (OCBC) as an apprentice clerk by 1933, rising rapidly to deputy general manager before leaving in 1959 after a difference of opinion with Tan Chin Tuan. In 1960, he restarted his career by founding Malayan Banking (now Maybank) with partners in Kuala Lumpur, which grew to over 150 branches within three years. He served as a senator in the Malaysian parliament from 1964 to 1965, but was ousted from Maybank in 1965 by the Malaysian government under Deputy Prime Minister Tun Abdul Razak on the pretext of pumping the bank's money into his own private firm in Singapore. In 1981, Khoo bought Australia's Southern Pacific Hotel Corporation using funds from the National Bank of Brunei, which he had opened in the 1960s. After the death of Sultan Omar in 1986, Sultan Hassanal arranged an investigation into the National Bank's finances, leading to its closure. Khoo had allegedly taken unsecured and undocumented loans of more than £300 million from the bank; he was never charged, but his son Khoo Ban Hock served two years in prison for his role. In 1986, as a white knight, Khoo acquired a 5% stake in Standard Chartered to help stave off a hostile takeover by Lloyds Bank, eventually growing his stake to almost 15% to become the largest single shareholder. He was listed as Singapore's richest businessman by Forbes in 2003. After his death from a heart attack at Mount Elizabeth Hospital in 2004, it was revealed he had a bigger stake in three listed companies—Goodwood Park, Hotel Malaysia, and Central Properties—than was disclosed to the Singapore Exchange; his daughters Jacqueline and Elizabeth were fined a total of S$500,000. He left his Standard Chartered stake, then approximately 11.5%, to his children, who sold it to Temasek Holdings in March 2006.

Reader's Guide

Khoo Teck Puat's significance lies in his rise from an apprentice clerk at OCBC to the wealthiest man in Singapore, largely through strategic banking investments. His acquisition of a major stake in Standard Chartered in the 1980s not only thwarted a hostile takeover by Lloyds Bank but also made him the bank's largest single shareholder, generating the bulk of his fortune. His founding of Malayan Banking (Maybank) established a major financial institution in Malaysia, though his ouster in 1965 by the Malaysian government under Tun Abdul Razak highlighted the risks of political and financial entanglements. The controversy surrounding the National Bank of Brunei, involving unsecured loans of more than £300 million and the imprisonment of his son Khoo Ban Hock, underscores the complex legacy of his business dealings. His philanthropic contributions include the Khoo Foundation, set up in 1981 with an initial S$20 million, which donated S$125 million towards the construction and operation of a hospital later renamed Khoo Teck Puat Hospital. His estate also donated S$80 million to Duke–NUS Medical School. His ownership of the historic Goodwood Park Hotel, built in 1900, preserved a Singapore landmark.

Did You Know?

• Khoo was educated up to standard eight before marrying at age 17 and began working as an apprentice clerk at OCBC by 1933.
• He served as a senator in the Malaysian parliament from 1964 to 1965.
• In 1986, Khoo acted as a white knight by acquiring a 5% stake in Standard Chartered to help thwart a hostile takeover by Lloyds Bank.
• After his death, it was revealed he had a bigger stake in three listed companies than was disclosed to the Singapore Exchange, leading to fines of S$500,000 for his daughters.
• His estate donated S$80 million to Duke–NUS Medical School.