Ng Teng Fong overtakes Khoos as S'pore's richest
Ng Teng Fong overtakes Khoos as S'pore's richest
By Grace Ng
PROPERTY magnate Ng Teng Fong has overtaken the Khoo family to top Forbes magazine's list of Singapore's richest people - with a cool US$1 billion (S$1.52 billion) lead.
Mr Ng, 79, a low-profile billionaire, who controls Far East Organization, was catapulted to the top spot by a 36 per cent surge in his wealth to US$6.7 billion amid the current property boom.
Far East is one of Singapore's major developers and has built more than 700 hotels, shopping malls and condominiums over the years.
A rare female rich-lister, Ms Christina Ong, the managing director of luxury fashion retailer Club 21, which also owns an Apple iPod reseller, was among 12 newcomers to the top 40 list.
She is the wife of Malaysian tycoon Ong Beng Seng, who made the Malaysian list.
Ms Ong was listed by Forbes at No. 36 as an entrepreneur in her own right, having amassed wealth of US$150 million.
Tops on Forbes list
1. Ng Teng Fong,
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Singapore's 40 richest
No. 2 on the list are the 14 descendants of Mr Khoo Teck Puat, the man behind the Goodwood Park Hotel, who died in 2004. They are said by Forbes to be worth US$5.7 billion. This excludes $125 million they recently donated to build a new hospital in Yishun named after their father, and US$32 million to Peking University in China.
Despite this, their wealth - much of it from a stake in Standard Chartered Bank - was up 14 per cent from US$5 billion last year, which was just a tad above Mr Ng's US$4.9 billion at that time.
It was a banner year for all of Singapore's 40 wealthiest citizens, whose collective riches ballooned 14 per cent to US$32 billion.
This figure pips the US$19 billion held by Thai barons but trails Malaysia's top 40, who hold US$43 billion, up from US$26 billion last year.
With sterling economic growth of 7.9 per cent and a 19 per cent surge in the stock market in the year to August, Singapore tycoons with listed interests in real estate, shipping and palm oil did particularly well.
They include Mr Zhong Shen Jian, 48, who controls the mainboard-listed Yanlord Land Group. Mr Zhong, who became a Singapore citizen last year, built his US$2.5 billion fortune by developing luxury residences in his native China. He is fourth on the list.
United Overseas Bank's (UOB) chairman Wee Cho Yaw and his family are No. 3. Their wealth shrank slightly to US$3.3 billion, from US$3.4 billion last year. Their holdings have been partly hit by a 10 per cent drop in UOB's shares since mid-July, due to global concerns about risky home loans in the United States.
Property magnate Kwek Leng Beng of Hong Leong Group and his family took fifth spot with US$1.1 billion.
Familiar names of yesteryear missing from this year's list include Mr Tang Wee Kit, chairman of retailer Tangs, and the Phua brothers who run furniture-maker HTL International. The wealth of these individuals dipped below the price of entry to Forbes' rich list of US$100 million. This was raised from last year's minimum of US$55 million.
Mr Simon Cheong, 50, well known for his upmarket condominium projects, makes his debut on the list at No. 15. His US$480 million fortune is held in SC Global, a high-end residential property developer here, and in an Australian developer AV Jennings.
At No. 32 is entrepreneur Victor Sassoon, 49, who runs a franchise selling Rolex watches in Singapore. He also co-runs the coffee chain Coffee Bean & Tea Leaf in 16 countries, and is 'buddies with Paula Abdul, who is a fan of his coffee', noted Forbes.
By Grace Ng
PROPERTY magnate Ng Teng Fong has overtaken the Khoo family to top Forbes magazine's list of Singapore's richest people - with a cool US$1 billion (S$1.52 billion) lead.
Mr Ng, 79, a low-profile billionaire, who controls Far East Organization, was catapulted to the top spot by a 36 per cent surge in his wealth to US$6.7 billion amid the current property boom.
Far East is one of Singapore's major developers and has built more than 700 hotels, shopping malls and condominiums over the years.
A rare female rich-lister, Ms Christina Ong, the managing director of luxury fashion retailer Club 21, which also owns an Apple iPod reseller, was among 12 newcomers to the top 40 list.
She is the wife of Malaysian tycoon Ong Beng Seng, who made the Malaysian list.
Ms Ong was listed by Forbes at No. 36 as an entrepreneur in her own right, having amassed wealth of US$150 million.
Tops on Forbes list
1. Ng Teng Fong,
... more
RELATED LINKS
Singapore's 40 richest
No. 2 on the list are the 14 descendants of Mr Khoo Teck Puat, the man behind the Goodwood Park Hotel, who died in 2004. They are said by Forbes to be worth US$5.7 billion. This excludes $125 million they recently donated to build a new hospital in Yishun named after their father, and US$32 million to Peking University in China.
Despite this, their wealth - much of it from a stake in Standard Chartered Bank - was up 14 per cent from US$5 billion last year, which was just a tad above Mr Ng's US$4.9 billion at that time.
It was a banner year for all of Singapore's 40 wealthiest citizens, whose collective riches ballooned 14 per cent to US$32 billion.
This figure pips the US$19 billion held by Thai barons but trails Malaysia's top 40, who hold US$43 billion, up from US$26 billion last year.
With sterling economic growth of 7.9 per cent and a 19 per cent surge in the stock market in the year to August, Singapore tycoons with listed interests in real estate, shipping and palm oil did particularly well.
They include Mr Zhong Shen Jian, 48, who controls the mainboard-listed Yanlord Land Group. Mr Zhong, who became a Singapore citizen last year, built his US$2.5 billion fortune by developing luxury residences in his native China. He is fourth on the list.
United Overseas Bank's (UOB) chairman Wee Cho Yaw and his family are No. 3. Their wealth shrank slightly to US$3.3 billion, from US$3.4 billion last year. Their holdings have been partly hit by a 10 per cent drop in UOB's shares since mid-July, due to global concerns about risky home loans in the United States.
Property magnate Kwek Leng Beng of Hong Leong Group and his family took fifth spot with US$1.1 billion.
Familiar names of yesteryear missing from this year's list include Mr Tang Wee Kit, chairman of retailer Tangs, and the Phua brothers who run furniture-maker HTL International. The wealth of these individuals dipped below the price of entry to Forbes' rich list of US$100 million. This was raised from last year's minimum of US$55 million.
Mr Simon Cheong, 50, well known for his upmarket condominium projects, makes his debut on the list at No. 15. His US$480 million fortune is held in SC Global, a high-end residential property developer here, and in an Australian developer AV Jennings.
At No. 32 is entrepreneur Victor Sassoon, 49, who runs a franchise selling Rolex watches in Singapore. He also co-runs the coffee chain Coffee Bean & Tea Leaf in 16 countries, and is 'buddies with Paula Abdul, who is a fan of his coffee', noted Forbes.
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