DOWNTOWN SINGAPORE still bears the clear imprint of Sir Stamford Raffles, the city's colonial founder. To the north of the Singapore River one finds the civic district with the law courts, Parliament and a smattering of government ministries. To the south of the cleaned-up waterway is the island's main commercial district, just as Sir Stamford decreed at the start of the 19th century.
At the junction of these two different worlds sits Wee Cho Yaw, chairman and chief executive of family-run United Overseas Bank (UOB). His main office overlooks the river, with an enviable view of the realm of civil servants and legislators. On the other side lies the country's business heart, the realm of making money rather than policies or statutes.
Although Mr Wee could look down on both sets of neighbours - UOB's main tower block stretches to 66 storeys - he chooses not to do so. It is Saturday morning and we are drinking tea in his sixth-floor room. The talk is of sleepless nights, ambition and the art of the takeover.
Our conversation makes plain, however, that it is the bank's next deal, not its last - the audacious takeover of domestic rival Overseas Union Bank (OUB) - which could determine Mr Wee's ultimate legacy.
'I am very attached to this bank, this is my second life. I want to make sure that this bank really can stand up and survive in this environment,' Mr Wee says.
His bank is as good an example as any of old-school Asian business preferences in action, where bloodlines can matter as much as anything else. Mr Wee took over from his father, Wee Kheng Chiang, in 1974. In due course, the 73-year-old intends to hand over to his eldest son, Wee Ee Cheong, now deputy-chairman and president.