Citi's Chua Boon-Lee to join Singapore’s CPF

In his second senior move since late 2009, Chua Boon-Lee will join the Central Provident Fund (CPF) Board in Singapore on July 4 as senior investment adviser.

He will help to oversee the management of funds administered by the CPF Board, such as those under the Home Protection Scheme and MediShield Scheme.

“Boon-Lee has always been closely involved in either equity or funds research, so he clearly comes with the right credentials,” says a Singapore-based executive at a US fund manager.

Chua had been Asia head of mutual fund due diligence at Citi in Singapore since December 2009, but left the bank in the first quarter of this year. He is currently on garden leave. Citi has appointed a replacement, who will come on board in July, but declined to identify the new hire.

Prior to joining Citi, Chua was head of investment consulting at fund research and consulting firm Morningstar in Singapore.

His new appointment comes as the CPF Board nears completion of the evaluation of existing funds offered under its investment scheme. The process – aimed at increasing the quality of products on offer to CPF members – has reduced the number of funds on offer, due to the scheme's stricter criteria.