New Silkroutes appoints CEO as Executive Director, new Finance Director

Singapore-based healthcare and energy firm New Silkroutes Group has appointed CEO VicPearly Wong as its Executive Director, and Lincoln Kwok as its Finance Director. 

With the additional role, Dr. Wong would be responsible for the overall management and operations of the group, as well as facilitating and managing the company. Also, Kwok with this appointment is responsible for the group's treasury, finance, audit, and strategic planning functions. These include fundraising, developing and maintaining banking relationships, and assisting the CEO in assessing and structuring corporate finance deals and investments.

Prior to this, Kwok was a financial controller at Hong Kong-listed Pipeline Engineering Holdings, which offers infrastructure pipeline construction and related engineering services.

Dr. Wong and Kwok's appointments come after the mainboard-listed firm in October announced that non-independent, non-executive Chairman Goh Jin Hian and Finance Director William Teo Thiam Chuan have resigned.

New Silkroutes said then that Dr. Goh stepped down as its Chairman to focus on personal matters and to pursue other interests. Further, Teo, meanwhile, stepped down "to devote more time to his personal affairs.

The resignations of the two New Silkroutes directors also came after the firm announced on Oct 15 that its auditor Deloitte & Touche has given a disclaimer of opinion on the financial statements of the group for the financial year ended June 30.

New Silkroutes previously noted that Dr. Goh and Teo were assisting the Commercial Affairs Department with investigations. The company said it understands that the alleged offense is false trading and market rigging in view of past share buybacks and acquisitions of shares.

Separately, New Silkroutes had also said that Dr. Goh was suitable to continue as a board member despite the IPP litigation because that is a civil suit against him and the allegations are without merit, based on his lawyers' legal advice.

Most recently in late October, New Silkroutes said it will appoint an independent public accounting firm to review matters relating to two of its agreements involving a China unit, and the valuation of its stake in a Thai firm.

This comes after Deloitte said in its Oct 14 report that it was unable to obtain sufficient audit evidence on matters including the business rationale, commercial substance, and structuring of two agreements that New Silkroutes' wholly-owned subsidiary Shanghai Fengwei Garment Accessory signed with a Chinese entity in April.