Yvonne Chia (; born c. 1953) is a

Malaysia Malaysia ( ; ) is a country in Southeast Asia. The federation, federal constitutional monarchy consists of States and federal territories of Malaysia, thirteen states and three federal territories, separated by the South China Sea into two r ...

businesswoman A businessperson, businessman, or businesswoman is an individual who has founded, owns, or holds shares in (including as an angel investor) a private-sector company. A businessperson undertakes activities (commercial or industrial) for the ...

and

banker A bank is a financial institution that accepts Deposit account, deposits from the public and creates a demand deposit while simultaneously making loans. Lending activities can be directly performed by the bank or indirectly through capital m ...

. She was the first woman in Malaysia to be the

chief executive officer A chief executive officer (CEO), also known as a central executive officer (CEO), chief administrator officer (CAO) or just chief executive (CE), is one of a number of corporate executives charged with the management of an organization especially ...

of a

bank A bank is a financial institution that accepts deposits from the public and creates a demand deposit while simultaneously making loans. Lending activities can be directly performed by the bank or indirectly through capital markets. Because ...

. She was the CEO of

Hong Leong Bank Hong Leong Bank Berhad (; ) is a major public listed banking group in Malaysia. History Early beginnings Hong Leong Bank began its operations in 1905 in Kuching, Sarawak, under the name of ''Kwong Lee Mortgage & Remittance Company''. The c ...

. She is currently the CEO of Shell Refining Company in Malaysia.

Career

She started working for

Bank of America The Bank of America Corporation (often abbreviated BofA or BoA) is an American multinational investment bank and financial services holding company headquartered at the Bank of America Corporate Center in Charlotte, North Carolina. The bank w ...

in the 1970s. She became Vice President of the Malaysian Bank of America and head of its marketing division. She left after working there for 18 years. She was awarded the CEO Eagle Pin, becoming the first woman in Malaysia to be awarded it. Chia became the first woman to serve as chief executive officer of a bank in Malaysia when she became CEO of

RHB Bank RHB Bank Berhad (), formerly known as RHB Sakura Merchant Bank Berhad, is a Malaysian bank based in Kuala Lumpur and founded in 1994. It is a subsidiary of RHB Capital Berhad, which is one of the largest banks in Malaysia. RHB Bank has over 1 ...

in the 1990s. She became the CEO of Hong Leong Bank in 2003 or 2004. In 2013, she was named one of

Forbes Asia ''Forbes'' () is an American business magazine owned by Integrated Whale Media Investments and the Forbes family. Published eight times a year, it features articles on finance, industry, investing, and marketing topics. ''Forbes'' also re ...

's "50 Businesswomen In The Mix".

References

Living people Malaysian bankers Malaysian people of Chinese descent Malaysian chief executives 1953 births 20th-century Malaysian businesspeople 20th-century Malaysian businesswomen 21st-century Malaysian businesspeople 21st-century Malaysian businesswomen {{Malaysia-bio-stub