ASIA EDITORS' PICK Hong Kong’s 50 Richest 2024: Collective Wealth Slumps In A Gloomy Property And Trade Landscape
With a 28% stock market decline, the combined fortune of Hong Kong’s wealthiest fell 9% to $296 billion.
This story appears in the February/March 2024 issue of Forbes Asia. Subscribe to Forbes Asia
No. 1 Li Ka-shing.VCG/GETTY IMAGES
This story is part of Forbes’ coverage of Hong Kong’s Richest 2024. See the full list here.
Buoyed by an uptick in tourism and consumption, Hong Kong’s economy grew an estimated 3.2% in 2023. Even so the post-pandemic recovery has been slower than expected amid a stagnant property sector and sluggish exports. With an IPO drought, the benchmark Hang Seng index declined 28% since we last measured fortunes a year ago. The collective net worth of Hong Kong’s 50 richest tycoons contracted by 9% to $296 billion.
Overall, 30 list members saw their fortunes fall, including Li Ka-shing, who retained the prime spot even as his net worth declined to $36.2 billion. Shares of Li’s property developer CK Asset Holdings, which has been reducing prices of its residential projects to boost demand, were down by a third from last year.
Real estate tycoon Lee Shau Kee remained at No. 2 though his net worth also dropped to $27 billion. His Henderson Land shares fell 30% in a weak market despite the better performance of its gas utility and hotel businesses.
At No. 3 is property and jewelry mogul Henry Cheng, who suggested in November that his successor could be an outsider. His net worth, shared with his family, was down nearly $7 billion to $22.1 billion—the biggest fall in dollar terms—amid slowing demand from the mainland. That also dealt a blow to sofa and bedding maker Man Wah Holdings, whose founder Wong Man Li’s wealth, in what was the biggest percentage decline this year, shrank by more than a third to $2 billion.
A dozen list members overcame the odds to make wealth gains. Notable in this group is shipping tycoon Helmut Sohmen, whose fortune got a $750 million boost to $6.25 billion, as a younger fleet helped drive up shares of his Oslo-listed tanker company Hafnia.
Among the three new faces this year is Solina Chau, who cofounded and runs Horizons Ventures, an investment firm backed by Li Ka-shing, best known for making early bets on Facebook (now Meta) and Zoom. Chow Shing Yuk earned a debut spot after his logistics and delivery firm Lalatech Holdings filed for an IPO on the Hong Kong Stock Exchange last year. The Keswick family of storied Jardine Matheson Holdings, one of Hong Kong’s oldest business empires, enters the ranks following the restructuring of the group’s complex cross-holdings.
The sole returnee is Silas Chou, an early investor in Michael Kors, who shares a $2.6 billion fortune with his family. Among the three drop-offs this year is casino mogul Lawrence Ho, a fixture on the list for a decade, whose Melco International Development was impacted by a broader industry sell-off. MIT-trained computer scientist and AI billionaire Tang Xiao’ou, cofounder of SenseTime, died in December at age 55.
Full Coverage of Hong Kong’s Richest 2024:
Property And Jewelry Tycoon Henry Cheng Puts Succession Plans Under Spotlight
How Solina Chau Built A Billion-Dollar Fortune Riding Shotgun To Hong Kong’s Richest Man
Former Pro Poker Player Turned Entrepreneur Shows Winning Hand
Sagging Sales Drag Down Wealth Of Sofa Billionaire
Casino Magnate Lawrence Ho Drops Off List Of Hong Kong’s 50 Richest Amid Macau’s Gambling Slump
Hong Kong Property Tycoons Weather Worst Slump In Two Decades With Little Relief In Sight
Reporting by Jonathan Burgos, Gloria Haraito, John Kang, Zinnia Lee, Chengbo Liu, Robert Olsen, Phisanu Phromchanya, Anuradha Raghunathan, Jessica Tan, Catherine Wang, Yue Wang and Yasmine Zhai.
Methodology:
The list was compiled using information from individuals, analysts, government agencies, stock exchanges, databases and other sources. Net worths were based on stock prices and exchange rates as of the close of markets on Feb. 2 and real-time net worths on Forbes.com may reflect different valuations. The ranking lists both individual and family fortunes, including those shared among relatives. Private companies were valued by using financial ratios and other comparisons with similar companies that are publicly traded. The list can also include foreign citizens with business, residential or other ties to the city, or citizens who don’t reside in the city but have significant business or other ties to the city. The editors reserve the right to amend any information or remove any listees in light of new information.
Acknowledgements:
Special thanks to the CBRE and JLL research teams, VesselsValue and other experts who helped us with our reporting and valuations, including Marina Bracciani, JLL; Lucia Leung, Knight Frank; Govinda Singh, Colliers; Daniel Stocker, JLL; Daniel Voellm, AP Hospitality Advisors; Martin Wong, Knight Frank.