Former cabinet minister Richard Hu has died, aged 96.

Hu was most notably Singapore's longest-serving finance minister, a post he held for 16 years — from 1985 to 2001.

Apart from that role, he also served as a Minister for Trade and Industry (1984 to 1985), Minister for Health (1985 to 1987), and Minister for National Development (1992 to 1993).

In a Sep. 8 Facebook post, Deputy Prime Minister and current Minister for Finance Lawrence Wong expressed his condolences to Hu's family.

"He stewarded our finances well, and provided a steady hand to steer our economy through the 1997 Asian Financial Crisis," wrote Wong.

The Deputy Prime Minister also relayed his memories of Hu, who was finance minister when Wong joined the ministry in 1999.

As part of the preparation for an upcoming Government Budget, Hu instructed Wong to go to a wet market to get information on the prices of essential items.

"So as to get a better feel of the cost of living pressures that people were experiencing then," wrote Wong.

"That’s what I remember of Dr Hu — not just thinking about policies in abstract, but making sure that policies led to tangible improvements in people's lives."

Distinguished career at Shell to the Cabinet

According to Singapore Infopedia, Hu was chairman and chief executive of all Shell companies in Malaysia and Singapore before becoming the managing director of the Monetary Authority of Singapore in 1983.

That same year he also became the managing director of the Government Investment Corporation.

In 1984, he participated in the General Election as a candidate from the People's Action Party for Kreta Ayer SMC.

Following his victory, Hu was made Minister of Trade and Industry — becoming the first first-term MP to be appointed to the Cabinet immediately.

Writing a tribute to Hu on his Facebook page, Deputy Prime Minister and Coordinating Minister for Economic Policies Heng Swee Keat noted the "instrumental role" that Hu played in overhauling Singapore's financial and banking sectors, paving the way for the city-state to become a financial hub.

"He steered Singapore out of the Asian Financial Crisis in 1998, implementing two-off Budget stimulus packages to help Singaporeans tide through the crisis," wrote Heng.

"His wisdom and foresight shaped our key policies, including the Goods and Services Tax which created a more resilient tax base for Singapore and boosted our international competitiveness."

"As a young civil servant, I was inspired by Dr Hu’s unwavering sense of public service," Heng added.

Top image from National Archives Singapore