Mr Wee Ee Cheong, Deputy Chairman and Chief Executive Officer, UOB (left), with Mr Kelvin Lim of LHN Limited, the winner of the auctioned art piece, “Bountiful Abundance”.
UOB and its Commercial Banking clients raised a record $1.88 million for charity through the Bank’s annual UOB Heartbeat Lunar New Year festive celebrations.
The money that was raised through a series of art workshops1 and client engagements will be donated to multiple charities supporting art, children and education in Singapore including The Business Times Budding Artists Fund and The Straits Times School Pocket Money Fund. The proceeds will also go towards supporting local small- and medium-sized enterprises’ innovation such as the UOB-Singapore Management University Asian Enterprise Institute as well as other programmes that help build a digitally-inclusive community.
Mr Wee Ee Cheong, Deputy Chairman and Chief Executive Officer, UOB, said, “As we turn the page and welcome new beginnings this Lunar New Year, we remain cognisant of the challenges many in the community face. This is why we are heartened to see the strong support from our clients in coming together to raise funds for worthy causes. We hope that our collective efforts will bring new energy and hope to those who need a helping hand and make the year ahead a more optimistic one for them and their families.”
The fundraising activities included the auction of an art piece, titled “Bountiful Abundance”, which depicts a powerful tiger surrounded by lush nature, signifying prosperity and abundance. This art piece that is affixed with a seal enameled by Mr Wee at one of the earlier art workshops2, went to Mr Kelvin Lim from LHN Limited, for a bid of $228,888.
This year, the Bank also created a digital representation, or what is commonly known as a non-fungible token (NFT), of Mr Wee’s art piece. The NFT was given to Mr Lim along with the physical art piece.
Mr Kelvin Lim, Executive Chairman and Group Managing Director of LHN Limited, said, “We look forward to UOB’s annual fundraising drive during Lunar New Year as they bring businesses together to support those who are in need. It is a meaningful way to celebrate the festive season and we appreciate UOB’s thoughtfulness and commitment in creating the opportunity for businesses to give back to the community.”
1 The art sessions were held in accordance to safe management measures.
2 The art fundraising workshops were held on the 24 and 25 of January. Please refer to news UOB release: More than $700,000 raised for charity through UOB’s annual Lunar New Year event with its clients.
