BUSINESS mogul and philanthropist Ng Bok Eng, whose integrity and generosity stretched beyond just the business community, died on Sunday.

He was 92.

He was survived by his wife of 68 years, Madam Ho Gim Tee, four children, 11 grandchildren and two great-grandchildren.

His son, Mr Ng Cheong Bian, 61, said his father died of 'old-age-related illnesses.'

Mr Ng, better known as the 'king of cloves', personified the rags-to-riches story.

Barely 12, he left his hometown in Jinmen, China, arriving six weeks later with his mother a two siblings in Bagan Siapi-api in Indonesia.

He first worked at a rubber plantation, sold peanut soup by the roadside, then became a coolie for $6 a month before giving into the lure of the sea - a decision that turned out to be a pivotal point in his life.

It was then that Mr Ng came across a hilltop village that was perpetually short of daily provisions that he hit upon the idea of supplying it with necessities, driving him to collaborate with the ship's owner.

During World War II, he seized upon the opportunity to start an import-export business with friends and in two years, established himself as a prominent merchant in the Straits of Malacca.

Mr Ng migrated to Singapore in 1947 and founded import-export firm Bian Bee Company, which mainly dealt with clove, coffee and pepper.