The Government of Singapore Investment Corp (GIC) plans to retain holdings in big western financial institutions such as UBS and Citigroup for up to 30 years and is looking for further investment opportunities in the sector, the chairman of the city state’s sovereign wealth fund said on Wednesday.

“We are buying into something that we intend to keep for the next two or three decades and grow with them,” said Lee Kuan Yew, GIC chairman and independent Singapore’s first leader.