Validus names Chong Khai Siang as Group’s Chief Financial Officer

By Gloria Mathias

Validus, Southeast Asia’s one-stop SME financing platform, has announced the appointment of Chong Khai Siang as Group Chief Financial Officer (CFO) of Validus, effective immediately, reporting to Group CEO Nikhilesh Goel.

Khai Siang will oversee the finance and corporate development functions and lead its business strategy across Southeast Asia.

Khai Siang is a financial services veteran with over two decades of leadership and expertise in business strategy, finance, treasury, and capital markets. He specialises in SME, retail, and global financial markets across Asia. Prior to joining Validus, he held senior leadership roles at Fullerton Financial Holdings and Standard Chartered. During his tenure at Fullerton, he enhanced overall enterprise value and strengthened governance frameworks between boards and management teams.

Nikhilesh Goel, Co-founder and Group CEO of Validus said, “With Khai Siang at the helm as the Group CFO for Validus, we are strategically positioned to accelerate our financial strategies and drive growth across all markets through innovative methods. I am delighted to welcome Khai Siang to Validus. As we continue to address the US$270 billion financing gap faced by SMEs in the region, his expertise will be pivotal in identifying opportunities and implementing robust financial solutions across Southeast Asia.”

Validus recently crossed a significant milestone of S$5 billion in SME loan disbursals across Singapore, Vietnam, Indonesia and Thailand. The company is backed by strategic investors and VCs, including Vertex Ventures Southeast Asia and India, Vertex Growth, FMO, 01Fintech, NongHyup Financial Group, Norinchukin Bank, Aizawa Asset Management, Lotte F&L, AddVentures by SCG, VinaCapital Ventures, SEA Frontier Fund, K3 Ventures, and Openspace Ventures.

At Standard Chartered Bank (SCB), Khai Siang previously held the position of Head of Liability Management, ALM, in the Financial Markets front office, where he managed the balance sheet and regulatory requirements. His tenure in SCB covered both front and middle offices, including ALM investment management, business finance and country finance in Singapore. He also spent three years as the ALM chief dealer in Shanghai, China. Khai Siang began his career at Deutsche Bank in global custody.