SINGAPORE - OCBC Bank veteran, Dr Cheong Choong Kong, will retire as chairman of its board of directors on Aug 31.

He will be succeeded on Sep 1 by Mr Ooi Sang Kuang, the non-executive lead independent director of the board.

But it's not goodbye for Dr Cheong, as the veteral will remain a director of OCBC and Great Eastern Holdings.

The bank says this will provide continuity so the OCBC group can still "benefit from his experience and wise counsel for a little longer".

Dr Cheong, 73, was appointed as a director of OCBC in July 1999.

From March 2002 to June 2003, he served as vice chairman of the board before being appointed chairman in July 2003.

He became a director of Great Eastern Holdings in 2005.

During his 11-year tenure as chairman of OCBC, Dr Cheong was credited with helping to implement many strategically important initiatives.

These include what OCBC described as "effective people management, succession planning and executive development".

OCBC shares closed up a cent at $9.58 on Friday. It announced Dr Cheong's retirement after markets closed.