2025 Board Changes at the Intellectual Property Office of Singapore

28 March 2025 Posted in Press releases

1.              The Ministry of Law (MinLaw) today announced board appointment changes at the Intellectual Property Office of Singapore (IPOS). These appointments will take effect from 1 April 2025.

Appointment of New Chairman and Retirement of Current Chairman

2.              Mr Nicky Tan, Chief Executive Officer, nTan Corporate Advisory Pte Ltd, will be appointed as the Chairman of the IPOS Board. He will succeed Dr Stanley Lai SC, Partner and Head of Intellectual Property Practice and Co-Head of Cybersecurity & Data Protection Practice, Allen & Gledhill LLP, who has served as Chairman since 1 April 2013.

3.              As Chairman, Dr Lai played a pivotal role in guiding the transformation of IPOS into a world leading agency that supports Singapore’s innovation economy. His leadership and unwavering commitment propelled Singapore to the forefront of IP and innovation on the global stage. Under his chairmanship, IPOS achieved significant milestones. The IP Hub Master Plan and the Singapore IP Strategy were launched in 2013 and 2021 respectively. IPOS was recognised as the most innovative IP office in the world by the World Trademark Review in 2020. Singapore consistently ranked highly on the Global Innovation Index (GII). Dr Lai’s tenure laid a strong foundation for IPOS’s continued work to strengthen Singapore’s position as a global intangible assets and IP hub.  

4.              MinLaw and IPOS extend our deepest gratitude to Dr Lai for his outstanding service and contributions.

5.              Mr Nicky Tan joined the IPOS Board on 1 April 2019 and has served as the Deputy Chairman of IPOS since 1 April 2020. Mr Tan currently heads nTan Corporate Advisory, a boutique corporate finance and corporate restructuring firm. He is also currently an independent director of Singtel Innov8 Pte Ltd, Chloride Eastern Industries Pte Ltd and Singtel Optus Pty Ltd. A qualified chartered accountant, Mr Tan is a member of the Institute of Singapore Chartered Accountants and a former member of the Institute of Chartered Accountants in England and Wales. Prior to forming his own consultancy firm, he was Partner and Head of Global Corporate Finance at Arthur Andersen Singapore and ASEAN region. Prior to this, he was Partner and Head of Financial Advisory Services at PricewaterhouseCoopers Singapore and Chairman of Financial Advisory Services at PricewaterhouseCoopers Asia Pacific.

Appointment and Reappointment of Board Members

6.              The following have been appointed to the IPOS Board for a term of two years.

·       Mr Kok Ping Soon, Chief Executive Officer, Singapore Business Federation

·       Ms Cindy Khoo, Managing Director, Enterprise Singapore

·       Mr Timothy Chin, Senior Director (Americas), Ministry of Trade and Industry

7.              Mr Oliver Tan, CEO and Co-Founder, ViSenze Pte Ltd, has been reappointed to the IPOS Board for a two-year term.

Appointment of Ex-Officio Member

8.              Mr Tan Kong Hwee, who was appointed as Chief Executive of IPOS from 1 March 2025, has been appointed as a member of the IPOS Board in an ex-officio capacity till 31 March 2028. Mr Tan succeeds former Chief Executive Mrs Rena Lee, who has assumed a full-time position in the Ministry for Foreign Affairs.

Out-going Board Members

9.              The following members will be stepping down on 31 March 2025, upon the completion of their current term of office. MinLaw and IPOS would like to extend our appreciation to the members for their dedicated service and invaluable contributions.

·       Mr Ted Tan, Enterprise Fellow, Enterprise Singapore

·       Mr Harsha Basnayake, Global Managing Partner (Business Administration and Risk), Ernst & Young

·       Mr Tan Pei-En, Senior Director (Government Data and Governance), Ministry of Digital Development and Information, and Assistant Chief Executive (Data & AI, Government Technology Office), Government Technology Agency

10.           A write-up on the new members and the full list of IPOS Board Members are available in Annex A and Annex B respectively.

MINISTRY OF LAW
28 MARCH 2025

Annex A: Profiles of Newly Appointed Chairman and Members of IPOS Board

Mr Nicky Tan (Chairman)
Chief Executive Officer, nTan Corporate Advisory Pte Ltd

Mr Nicky Tan joined the IPOS Board on 1 April 2019 and has served as the Deputy Chairman of IPOS since 1 April 2020. Mr Nicky Tan currently runs nTan Corporate Advisory, a boutique corporate finance and corporate restructuring firm. He is a Qualified Chartered Accountant with many years of Asia-wide, extensive hands-on experience in auditing, corporate finance, corporate advisory and restructuring and forensic investigations. 

Prior to forming his own advisory firm, he was Partner and Head of Global Corporate Finance at Arthur Andersen Singapore and ASEAN.  Prior to this, he was Partner and Head of Financial Advisory Services at PricewaterhouseCoopers Singapore and Chairman of Financial Advisory Services at PricewaterhouseCoopers Asia Pacific.  A qualified chartered accountant, Mr Tan is a member of the Institute of Singapore Chartered Accountants and a former member of the Institute of Chartered Accountants in England and Wales.

He is a member of the School Management Committee of Pei Chun Public School. He is also currently an independent director of Singtel Innov8 Pte Ltd, Chloride Eastern Industries Pte Ltd and Singtel Optus Pty Ltd. He is also currently the Chairman of Singtel Optus’ Risk Committee and member of its Audit Committee. He previously served on the Singtel Optus Advisory Committee from 2003 to 2012 and was also the Chairman of the said committee.

Mr Tan previously served as an independent director and chairman of both the Audit Committee and the Finance and Investment Committee of Singapore Telecommunication Ltd. He also served as an independent director and a member of the Executive Board Committee of Fraser and Neave Limited. He also served as an independent director and member of the Board’s Executive Committee, the Executive Resource & Compensation Committee, the Nominating Committee and Technology Advisory Panel of Sembcorp Industries Ltd. 

He also served as a director of National University Health System (NUHS) and a member of its Executive Board Committee and Chairman of Audit and Risk Committee, and as a board member of the National Cancer Centre Research Fund and a member of MOH Holdings Pte Ltd (Ministry of Health) Audit & Risk Committee.  For his contributions to healthcare, Mr Tan was awarded The Public Service Medal by the President of Singapore in 2021. 

Mr Tan Kong Hwee
Chief Executive, Intellectual Property Office of Singapore

Mr Tan Kong Hwee was appointed Chief Executive of IPOS from 1 March 2025. Prior to his current role, he was a member of the Economic Development Board (EDB)’s Executive Committee, and the Executive Vice President (EVP) overseeing the Global Enterprises and Marketing Group, where he was responsible for efforts to brand and market Singapore as an international business location, and to facilitate business activities of enterprises with investment interests in Singapore. He also had responsibilities for the DesignSingapore Council and the Office for Space Technology and Industry. Mr Tan began his career in the public service with the Ministry of Home Affairs in 2002. He joined the EDB’s Infocomms and Media Division in 2006 and was subsequently posted to Japan and Europe. 

Mr Kok Ping Soon
Chief Executive Officer, Singapore Business Federation

Mr Kok Ping Soon is the CEO of the Singapore Business Federation (SBF), the apex business chamber championing the interests of Singapore’s business community in trade, investment and industrial relations matters. Prior to his current appointment, Mr Kok was the Chief Executive of the Government Technology Agency of Singapore. He also held various positions in the Ministry of Manpower, the National Security Co-ordination Secretariat, the Ministry of Trade & Industry, the Singapore Tourism Board, Contact Singapore (CS) and the Singapore Economic Development Board (EDB). Mr Kok also serves on the Board of SBF Holdings, SBF Connect, SBF Foundation, the Accounting and Corporate Regulatory Authority, the Global Compact Network Singapore and Singapore Pools. He is also a member of Singapore International Arbitration Centre, Singapore International Mediation Centre, NUS Institute of Systems Sciences, National Integration Council and a fellow member of Singapore Computer Society.

Ms Cindy Khoo
Managing Director, Enterprise Singapore

Ms Cindy Khoo is the Managing Director of Enterprise Singapore (EnterpriseSG). Prior to her appointment at EnterpriseSG, she had been with the Strategy Group in the Prime Minister’s Office (PMO) since 2019, where she oversaw functions such as Strategic Planning and Futures, before taking on the role of Deputy Secretary in September 2021. Ms Khoo has also handled a variety of policy portfolios in the Ministry of Health, the Public Service Division and the Ministry of Education. She has in-depth knowledge of sustainability, social and economic issues, drawn from her work experiences.

Mr Timothy Chin
Senior Director (Americas), Ministry of Trade and Industry

Mr Timothy Chin joined the Ministry of Trade and Industry in July 2022 as Senior Director (Americas). In this capacity, he formulates and executes strategies, policies and programmes related to Singapore’s economic engagement of economies in North and Latin America. Mr Chin also oversees Government-to-Government agreements and platforms, such as the US-Singapore Free Trade Agreement, and is the Deputy Chief Negotiator for the Indo-Pacific Economic Framework. He previously assumed various roles at the Ministry of Culture, Community and Youth, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, and the Ministry of Education.

Annex B: List of IPOS Board Members (as of 1 April 2025)

Mr Nicky Tan (Chairman)
Chief Executive Officer
nTan Corporate Advisory Pte Ltd

Ms Usha Chandradas
Co-Founder
(Plu)ral Art LLP

Ms Charlene Chang
Deputy Secretary (Development)
Ministry of Law

Mr Timothy Chin
Senior Director (Americas)
Ministry of Trade and Industry

Mr Edgar Hardless
Chief Executive Officer
Singtel Innov8

Ms Cindy Khoo
Managing Director
Enterprise Singapore

Mr Kok Ping Soon
Chief Executive Officer
Singapore Business Federation

Professor Susanna Leong
Vice Provost (Masters’ Programmes & Lifelong Education) and
Dean (School of Continuing & Lifelong Education)

National University of Singapore
Mr Lim Der Shing
Co-Founder and Partner
AngelCentral Pte Ltd

Dr Lim Jui
Chief Executive Officer
Singapore Innovate Pte Ltd

Mr Tan Kong Hwee
Chief Executive
Intellectual Property Office of Singapore

Mr Oliver Tan
CEO and Co-Founder
ViSenze Pte Ltd

Ms Lorraine Tay
Head of Intellectual Property Group
Bird & Bird ATMD LLP

Ms Winnie Tham
Director
Amica Law LLC

Last updated on 28 March 2025