Forbes - Asia (March 2020)

MARCH 2020
































“It’s like a
partnership.
For more than
15 years, we’ve
been working
this way.”





























Standing





Together









MARTIN AND PETER LEE SHARE
THEIR VISION FOR HENDERSON LAND








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AUSTRALIA....................A $12.00 INDIA.................................RS 475 KOREA...........................W 10,500 PAKISTAN........................RS 900 TAIWAN..........................NT $275
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HONG KONG..................HK $90 JAPAN......................¥1238 + TAX NEW ZEALAND...........NZ $13.00 SINGAPORE....................S $12.50 UNITED STATES..........US $10.00

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March 2020 Volume 16 • Number 2




INSIDE
2

MALAYSIA’S 50 RICHEST
S 40 | Slow Motion
CONTENT The richest take a hit amid political


uncertainty and virus fears.
By Naazneen Karmali













































THE PROFILE

48 | Lease is More
Billionaire Andre Koo took Taiwan’s
Chailease, an also-ran in his family’s
financial empire, and built it into
a regional leasing powerhouse.
By Pamela Ambler



FEATURES

COVER STORY 56 | Private Equity’s
New Billionaire Machine
32 | Building Icons
As calls for taxes on the superrich grow
Peter and Martin Lee discuss their first year as joint chairmen of Henderson Land, louder, Wall Street’s smartest dealmakers
their father’s legacy and their future plans for the diversified property giant. have quietly discovered a new way to
By Robert Olsen unlock value and circumvent taxes. It’s
minting buyout billionaires by the dozen.
COVER PHOTOGRAPH BY JOCELYN TAM FOR FORBES ASIA By Nathan Vardi & Antoine Gara


F ORBES A SIA MAR CH 2020



4
ENTREPRENEURS


S 12 | Sky’s the Limit
CONTENT investing more than $100 million to expand
Despite the virus threat, Song Hoi-see is

his Plaza Premium airport lounge empire.
By Shu-Ching Jean Chen

16 | Kevin Durant’s Hardest
Three-Point Play
The NBA superstar has three goals: a return
to dominance, a defining championship
and a lasting business empire.
By Steven Bertoni

20 | LinkedIn for the Working Class

Jobcase is building a social networking site
for warehouse employees and waitresses.
By Vicky Valet



12
TECHNOLOGY
24 | Game Changer

William Tanuwijaya built Tokopedia into
Southeast Asia’s third-largest unicorn, 62
and he’s not done yet. FORBES LIFE
By Ulisari Eslita & Ester Christine Natalia 70 | Luxury Upgrade

CEO Sébastien Bazin is leading a trans-
28 | Genius Drugs From Dumb Silicon
formation of French hotel giant Accor.
Can a giant pile of data beat human expertise
By Pamela Ambler
in the design of miracle drugs? Daphne Koller
may come up with a surprising answer.
74 | Eye of the Beholder
By Jillian D’Onfro
A look back at the ten most expensive
sales of artwork over the 2010s.
30 | Roku Redo
By Susan Adams
Anthony Wood is betting Roku’s future on
what viewers hate: advertising.
By Angel Au-Yeung
8 | Fact & Comment
Steve Forbes 70
How to save U.S. politics.
UNDER 30
10 | Tech Connector
62 | The Ace of Base
Rich Karlgaard
Yuta Tsuruoka is finding new growth for
Cloud pleaser.
his startup Base by lending to his customers.
By James Simms 11 | Economics Matters
Yuwa Hedrick-Wong
64 | 30 Under 30 U.S. Class of 2020
New decade, new paradigm.
This year’s 30 Under 30 as featured in the
pages of the U.S. edition of Forbes. 76 | Thoughts
Editors: Steven Bertoni & Alexandra Wilson On morale.


F ORBES A SIA MAR CH 2020



6 6 CEO William Adamopoulos Editor Justin Doebele
Senior Vice President Tina Wee Executive Editor Wayne Arnold
Executive Directors Eugene Wong, Aarin Chan, Janelle Kuah Asia Wealth Editor & India Editor Naazneen Karmali
Director, Circulation Eunice Soo Senior Editor Robert Olsen
Sales Directors Michelle Ong, Lindsay Williams, Janice Ang Senior Editor-Special Projects Rana Wehbe
Deputy Director, Marketing & Research Joan Low Art Director Mirna Aprilla
Deputy Director, Circulation Pavan Kumar Associate Editor Grace Chung
Deputy Director, Events & Communications Audra Ruyters Senior Reporter Pamela Ambler
Deputy Director, Conferences Jolynn Chua Assistant Editor John Kang
Senior Manager/Assistant to the CEO Jennifer Chung Multimedia Producer Atika Lim
Senior Manager, Events & Communications Melissa Ng Office Manager, Editorial Cathy Yip
Senior Manager, Ad Services – Digital Keiko Wong
Ad Services Manager Fiona Carvalho ASIA CONTRIBUTOR NETWORK
Conference Managers Clarabelle Chaw, Dorinn Chin, Elaine Dang Columnist Yuwa Hedrick-Wong
Assistant Manager, Marketing & Research Gwynneth Chan Contributing Editor Jennifer Wells
Assistant Manager, Conferences Peh Ying Si Bangkok Suzy Nam
Office Manager, Hong Kong Megan Cheung Beijing Yue Wang
Advertising Executive Sharon Joseph Chennai Anuradha Raghunathan
Marketing and Research Executive Priscilla Lim Ho Chi Minh Lan Anh Nguyen
Advertising Coordinator Tiffany Tan Hong Kong Shu-Ching Jean Chen
Circulation Services Taynmoli Karuppiah Sannassy, Jennifer Yim Jakarta Joseph Cochrane
Manila Roel Landingin
Perth Tim Treadgold
Shanghai Jane Ho
Singapore Christian Barker
Taipei Joyce Huang
Tokyo James Simms



CHAIRMAN AND EDITOR-IN-CHIEF: STEVE FORBES


FORBES MEDIA EDITORIAL
Chief Executive Officer and President Michael Federle Chief Content Officer Randall Lane
Chief Financial Officer Michael York Director, Editorial Operations Caroline Howard
Chief Revenue Officer Jessica Sibley Executive Editors Luisa Kroll, Kerry Lauerman, Michael Noer
Chief Growth Officer Tom Davis Design Director Alicia Hallett-Chan
Editor-at-Large/Global Futurist Rich Karlgaard Assistant Managing Editors Kerry A. Dolan, Brett Knight,
President, ForbesWoman Moira Forbes Rob LaFranco, Laura Mandaro, Janet Novack, Michael Ozanian,
Matt Schifrin, Michael Solomon, Alex Wood
FOUNDED IN 1917 Editorial Counsel Jessica Bohrer
Editor-in-Chief (1917-54) B.C. Forbes DIGITAL
Editor-in-Chief (1954-90) Malcolm S. Forbes Chief Product Officer Nina Gould
Editor (1961-99) James W. Michaels Chief Technology Officer Vadim Supitskiy
Editor (1999-2010) William Baldwin





MARCH 2020 — VOLUME 16 • NUMBER 2
FORBES ASIA (ISSN 1793 2181) is published monthly, except bimonthly in May/June and July/August, with an additional special issue in October. FORBES ASIA is printed at
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F ORBES A SIA MAR CH 2020

Sidelines
STRESS TEST SE
7







O ne cannot cover the business scene in Asia CTION
these days without highlighting the chal-
lenge presented by the outbreak of the coro-
navirus (officially Covid-19) for the region’s
entrepreneurs, companies, governments
and economies. Just one example: Hong Kong’s financial
secretary recently said the outbreak could deal a “tsunami-
scale blow” to the city’s economy.
The Covid-19 outbreak will also have a negative impact
on the global economy. The worst-hit areas are in and
around Wuhan, China, the source of the virus, but the im-
pact is being felt acutely across most of Asia—and indeed
the global economy.
JUSTIN DOEBELE
The most obvious industries being affected are airlines, EDITOR, FORBES ASIA
retail, F&B, hospitality and tourism. Insurance will no
doubt take a big hit from various claims. Then there’s the
stress put on the medical industry—a major problem is the
lack of a vaccine to help prevent its spread. Thankfully, the
mortality rate for Covid-19 is much lower than for SARS,
but it also seems more contagious. The outbreak highlights a truth about the emerging cen-
As many commentators have noted, the increasingly glo- trality of China. Given the greater role that China now plays
balized world, with its complex supply chains, trade routes in the global economy—in such areas as trade, technology
and air traffic, can enable the virus to spread as fast as it can and consumption—then what affects China will increas-
also move people, goods and services. Governments and ingly have a broader effect on everyone.
international organizations, for the most part, have been The old adage that health is wealth is never truer than
swift to implement measures to try to contain the spread of today. While some predicted China would produce another
the virus, building on lessons learned in previous episodes virus after the SARS crisis, the timing, severity and origin
with the H1N1 virus and other contagions. Companies have cannot be foreseen. Covid-19 is a stark reminder of the
installed business continuity plans, which typically include power of black swans, those unwelcome and, by definition,
steps such as more telecommuting, business travel restric- unexpected events that can have significant consequences.
tions and cancelling face-to-face meetings. Everywhere It is a global stress test, which one hopes the world can
people are taking precautions, such as elbow bumps in- soon pass. As always, any comments welcome at editor@
stead of handshakes, and avoiding crowded areas. forbesasia.com.
It is possible that the virus, similar to others before it,
will burn itself out in a few months. Yet even if there is a
return to normalcy by the summer, the global economy will
still need time to recover—companies will take a hit in their
first-half results, and governments will take one in growth
rates and tax revenues. [email protected]














MAR CH 2020 F ORBES A SIA

“With all thy getting, get understanding”




FACT & COMMENT
By Steve Forbes, Editor-in-Chief





How to Save U.S. Politics



8









Critics of the much-maligned Electoral Look at the Democrats. The party has
College overlook one of its fundamental indeed lunged to the left, but behold what’s
virtues: tamping down dangerously divi- happened to its presidential wannabes who
sive politics. Advocates of replacing this most faithfully parroted the extreme views of
“18th-century anachronism” with a straight far-left activists on such matters as rigid anti-
popular vote implicitly assume the current individual identity politics or an immediate
two-party system would remain intact and government takeover of health care: They’ve
that the candidate with the most individual floundered or have tried to soften the sharp-
votes—instead of electoral votes—would ness of their views. Elizabeth Warren’s once
win the White House. That’s the way things expanding bubble deflated once she had to
work for every other elected office in the explain how she was going to pay for all the
U.S.; why wouldn’t it be so for the most im- “free stuff” she was promising. Party mem-
portant one of all? bers were also put off by her harsh negativity.
But the basic two-party arrangement we take for grant- If one of the parties does veer far from the existing cen-
ed exists only because of the Electoral College. To win the ter, it will suffer a shattering defeat, as the Democrats did in
presidency, a candidate has to appeal to people across the 1972 when they nominated a far-left candidate who ended
country. A nationwide coalition is essential to gaining a up carrying only one state and the District of Columbia.
majority in the Electoral College. A narrow sectional or Along the same lines, because candidates have to wage
special-interest base simply won’t cut it. That’s why our nationwide campaigns to win, the Electoral College forc-
parties are collections of many diverse interests and back- es these contenders to become familiar with local and re-
grounds, reflecting the character of this continental na- gional issues they might otherwise overlook, most particu-
tion whose citizens, or forebears, have come from all cor- larly in battleground states. The current arrangement does
ners of the world and reflect a wide array of cultures and more to give a voice to minorities, people whose support
beliefs. It’s why supporters of the Democratic and Repub- could be crucial in key states.
lican parties are so often uneasy with one another. GOP Today’s parties are state and local organizations. Each runs
voters in the Northeast, for instance, who tend to empha- its own show its own way. Sure, there are national committees,
size economic issues such as low taxes, are put off by social but they are essentially fundraising entities for congressional
conservatives. and gubernatorial candidates—and their party’s presidential
The system puts a premium on moderation. Yes, can- candidate. Every four years local parties come together to for-
didates can advocate bold programs, but they have to do mally nominate a presidential candidate, who then is auto-
so in ways that don’t alienate more tepid members of their matically put on the ballot in every state in the union (and the
party, not to mention independent voters. A radical idea District of Columbia). In contrast, independent candidates for
usually goes through what might be called a marinating our ultimate office have to go through an expensive, laborious
process, during which time people become accustomed to process to get on all the ballots. Few manage to do so. Each
the notion, and even then it has often become a watered- state has its own rules—some easy, others extremely difficult.
down version of the original. A direct popular vote for president would shatter this
The Electoral College’s systemic bias for softening the political ecosystem that’s uniquely suited to America.
rough, potentially dangerous edges of national politics has Individuals and special-interest organizations would
enabled us for over two centuries to debate and resolve continuously create their own parties. For example, would
even bitterly contentious issues without tearing apart the Mike Bloomberg—who at various times during his political
country and leaving wounds that can fester for genera- career has been a Democrat, a Republican and an indepen-
tions. The exception, of course, was the issue of slavery. dent—even bother to try to fetch the Democratic nomina-
Otherwise, the tendency to move toward moderation and tion for president? Of course not. With his resources, he
inclusion has held. would do it on his own.


F ORBES A SIA MAR CH 2020

Unlike the two-party system the Electoral Col-
lege fosters today, there would be numerous candi- Don’t Ground
dates competing in a national election. More basic These Sneakers
and ominous is that in contrast to the moderating
bias of the Electoral College, a direct popular-vote Nike has produced a sneaker called the Vaporfly 9
system would put a premium on inflaming passions that is roiling the sports world. Its technology, ac-
to gin up support for candidates in a crowded field. cording to critics and competitors, gives users an
Of course, if no aspirant reached a certain “unfair” advantage in elite running races, thereby F A
threshold—and what level should that be: 40%? threatening the integrity of the sport. It appears CT
50%?—there would have to be a runoff. Since there the shoes won’t be banned in this summer’s Tokyo &
would be so many candidates vying to occupy 1600 Olympics; however, the world governing body for
Pennsylvania Avenue, one could easily envision track and field is trying to curb further improve-
elections in which the runoff would be between two ments in this technology. COMMENT
extremist candidates who each received, say, 10% of Huh? What’s the big deal here? We’re not talking
the vote in the first round. To win a runoff, contend- about drugs. Isn’t sports equipment supposed to get
ers would have to bargain with the field’s losers for better? The way Vaporflys are constructed reduces
support in the final round. The horse-trading and a runner’s “energy cost.” Runners love them. Win-
outright payoffs this new system would encourage ners of recent marathons, at which records were set,
would make today’s political bargaining look tame wore versions of the sneaker. Naturally, Nike’s com-
in comparison. petitors are unhappy that prestige (and amateur)
Then, of course, you would have crucial, nitty-grit- athletes are flocking to Vaporflys. They would be
ty details to resolve. Who would police the 175,000 delighted to see Vaporflys banned in competitions—
voting districts to avoid chicanery? Who would en- for now. They’re scrambling to create their own ver-
sure that absentee ballots were not tampered with? sions—free-market competition works!
All of this could involve a major expansion in the cen- Over the years sneakers have made quantum
tral government’s power. Each state today has its own leaps in comfort, style and durability. So have sports
rules for voting. Some states, for example, encourage fabrics and other kinds of equipment. Isn’t this what
early voting; others do not. Under a direct-voting progress is supposed to be all about?
system, these rules would have to be uniform—again,
another extension of Washington’s power.
Democrats hate the Electoral College because
in both the 2000 and 2016 elections they lost the Bloomberg
White House even though their candidates received Blows It
more popular votes than their GOP opponents. This
ignores the fact that if the College hadn’t existed Mike Bloomberg proclaims he
during those contests, the candidates would have can best beat Donald Trump. But
waged entirely different kinds of campaigns. Donald he made a blunder that will hurt
Trump, for instance, would not have taken precious him badly if he is the Democrats’ nominee this No-
time near the end of the campaign to visit Maine in vember: He came out for raising economic-growth-
the hope of garnering an electoral vote in a congres- killing taxes on a scale that would ostensibly raise
sional district (which he did). almost 50% more revenue than Joe Biden’s sup-
Our Founders knew exactly what they were doing posedly more moderate schemes. Bloomberg’s nos-
when they created the Electoral College. We ignore trums would crush capital creation and business
their wisdom at our peril. investment and tank the stock market. Economic
growth would stagnate, and wage growth would
wither, if not decline.
By contrast, the president will be unveiling an-
other round of tax cuts to be enacted if he’s reelected.
Introducing Bloomberg and the rest of the Democratic field
What’s Ahead, have forgotten what happened the last time their
the new podcast hosted party standard-bearer so loudly trumpeted raising
by Steve Forbes. taxes: In 1984, pro-tax Walter Mondale carried only
Subscribe now on iTunes one state and the District of Columbia against the
or GooglePlay Store. tax-cutting incumbent, Ronald Reagan. F


MAR CH 2020 F ORBES A SIA

TECH CONNECTOR
By Rich Karlgaard





Cloud Pleaser



10







Microsoft is on a monster win streak. erything—reinventing their business
Its stock price, which had barely risen Scott Guthrie processes and revenue models because
above its 2000 peak prior to 2017, has of that change.”
now risen almost threefold in the past
three years. On any given day, Micro- On Asia’s potential:
soft or Apple stands as the world’s “Asia and India are among our fast-
most-valued company, at close to a est-growing regions for Azure. This
trillion-and-a-half dollars. growth comes from large companies,
Behind the surge is CEO Satya like LG and Samsung, and from newer
Nadella’s transformative bet on cloud companies like Flipkart, Ola Cab and
computing, which he announced upon Jio Phones in India. Singapore is one
taking the post in 2014. The risk was of our largest regions of Azure, what
huge, since Microsoft’s cloud comput- we call a hub region. Similarly, if you
ing engine, Azure, was then far behind look at Hong Kong and Australia and
cloud pioneer and leader Amazon the customers across Malaysia, Indo-
Web Services (AWS), IBM and oth- nesia, Vietnam, and Thailand, those
ers. Nadella gave his old job, executive are all big markets for us. We see tre-
vice president of Microsoft Cloud+AI mendous growth.”
Group, to Microsoft executive Scott Guthrie and asked
Guthrie to make Azure competitive with giant AWS. Guth- On Microsoft’s competitive advantage:
rie has succeeded. Microsoft’s cloud business reported $12 “Microsoft has 56 Azure regions around the world and
billion in sales in 2019, with Azure growing 62% in the lat- more cloud regions in Asia than any other cloud provider.
est quarter. Forbes has called Guthrie arguably the second So, for issues such as data residency and very local com-
most-powerful executive at Microsoft after Nadella. pliance certifications, we can work in countries that other
In late January I sat down with Guthrie, wearing his cloud vendors can’t. All of that makes a big difference to
trademark red polo shirt and jeans, at Microsoft headquar- companies as they look to expand and transform their
ters in Redmond, Washington. Below are edited highlights business.”
of Guthrie’s remarks.
On the cloud as an equalizer:
On the shift to cloud computing: “We see great companies in these regions. They aspire to
“We made a pivot six years ago, when Satya became CEO, to be global companies and reach every market around the
be a cloud-first company. Our goal was to accelerate digital world. The cloud is a great equalizer. It lets a company in
transformation for our customers. Give them cloud as a way any country expand outside their region. An Azure cus-
to let them advance their business and add more tech inten- tomer in Jakarta, Singapore or Bangalore can, with a push
sity to their organization.” of a button, deploy their products and services in Europe.
North America, the Middle East or Africa while meeting
On the cloud’s future: local regulations and compliance.”
“We see a faster rate of evolution in the digital space. Cloud
lets us scale up at the pace of Moore’s Law, but also scale out Rich Karlgaard is editor at large at Forbes.
rapidly and use less infrastructure. The physical world is As an author and global futurist, he has
going digital. Everything has an IP address. Everything will published several books, the latest of
which is Late Bloomers, a groundbreaking
be connected at 5G speed. The ability to link physical and exploration of what it means to be a late STEPHEN LAM/GETTY IMAGES
digital processes transforms the amount of data you can bloomer in a culture obsessed with SAT
scores and early success. For his past
collect—and the insights you will have. We see every busi-
columns and blogs visit our website at
ness out there—retail, logistics, finance, manufacturing, ev- www.forbes.com/sites/richkarlgaard.


F ORBES A SIA MAR CH 2020

ECONOMICS MATTERS
By Yuwa Hedrick-Wong





New Decade, New Paradigm



11







Much of the handwringing over China
and emerging markets this year has
stemmed from the unfolding damage
caused by the Covid-19 outbreak—but
while the virus is still spreading, it’s
hard to know the final cost. We can,
however, make a few judgments on
the effect of U.S.-China trade war on
emerging markets, which were sup-
posed to hammer Chinese exports.
It was also assumed that China-
centric global supply chains would
be disrupted—even partially disman-
tled—and that emerging markets in
Asia that are part of them would be
adversely affected. Yet China’s total
exports in 2019 were virtually un-
changed from 2018, falling by only
0.03% in dollar terms even as the
trade war intensified. Chinese exports
to the U.S. fell more than 8%, but
China was able to almost completely
compensated for that shortfall by selling more to the rest tribution to global growth was about half China’s at 18%.
of the world. China’s exports to ASEAN grew 10% and The EU contributed less than India—7.9%. Between them,
climbed 4.5% to the EU, putting the latter on track to sur- China, India and Indonesia accounted for 55.5%—more
pass China’s exports to the U.S. this year. China’s exports than half—of global GDP growth between 2017 and 2019.
are now estimated to represent roughly 12% of total global Something new is happening in the global economy. The
exports, which is a greater proportion, according to CPB economies of North America and western Europe are still
World Trade Monitor, than in July 2018 when the trade important, but they no longer dominate the global econo-
war started. my. Emerging Asia, and China in particular, is reaching a
The pessimism over emerging Asia was unwarranted. To threshold at which its domestic markets are large enough,
be sure, the ups and downs of the developed world used to and its ability to mobilize investment strong enough, to
drive global trade, but this paradigm is obsolete, and has drive global trade and investment, as well as global GDP.
been for some time. Between 2017 and 2019, the U.S.-Chi- To navigate this new decade, we’ll need to better under-
na trade war was intensifying and growth in North America stand the ramifications of this new paradigm shaping the
and western Europe was slowing. The strongest economy global economy.
DIETER SPANNKNEBEL/GETTY IMAGES developed countries to become the primary driver of the Yuwa Hedrick-Wong is Chief Economics
in Europe, Germany, grew by an anemic 0.6% in 2019, its
weakest since 2013. Emerging Asia, meanwhile, overtook

Commentator for Forbes Asia. He is also a
global economy with China being the largest contributor to
visiting scholar at the Lee Kuan Yew School
of Public Policy, National University of
global GDP growth, according to World Bank data.
Singapore. Having worked as an economist
Yet China was only one of three emerging Asian econo-
across the Asia-Pacific, Europe, Middle East
and Africa in the past 25 years, he regularly
mies among the top five contributors to growth: China con-
writes columns about the global economy for
tributed 35% of growth, India was third with an 18%, and
Indonesia was fifth with 2.5%. By contrast, the U.S. con-
can be reached at: [email protected].
MAR CH 2020 Forbes Asia. Views expressed are his own. He
F ORBES A SIA

ENTREPRENEURS
By Shu-Ching Jean Chen Photographs by Jocelyn Tam for Forbes Asia






Sky’s the Limit


12



Despite the virus threat, SONG HOI-SEE is investing more than $100 million
to expand his Plaza Premium airport lounge empire.

















































I four continents. Its roughly 5,000 employees serve Song Hoi-see of Plaza





more than 16 million passengers annually, nearly
70% market share of
one in every 116 international air travelers. Premium says it has
global independent
lounge traffic.
Despite the coronavirus shock on the trav-
el industry, Song remains optimistic on air trav-
It was his own frustration el’s long-term future—after all, he’s already sur-
with air travel that inspired Malaysian Song Hoi- vived two previous crises, the Asia financial cri-
see to get into the airport lounge business. “I sis and the SARS outbreak. He is now investing
founded this business out of my own bad expe- more than $100 million in an aggressive expan-
rience,” says the 62-year-old founder and CEO of sion plan that includes adding airport hotels and
Plaza Premium Group International, which he upgrades of existing lounges.
launched in 1998. Song’s story is part of a larger one of the trans-
Today Song’s Plaza Premium—of which he owns formation of airports from utilitarian way sta-
100%—claims to be the world’s largest indepen- tions into showcase destinations, especially in the
dent airport lounge operator, managing more than major hub airports competing with each other in
70 lounges in 46 airports in 22 countries across Asia and the Middle East for passenger traffic.


F ORBES A SIA MAR CH 2020

“Gone are the days when airport operators de- lounges were serving even 1 of every 100 passen-
fined themselves solely as infrastructure providers,” gers, the remainder represented a massive, un-
says Dimitri Coll, director for airport service quality tapped market. “If I could start a business to ser-
at Airports Council International World. “Increas- vice these people, the business should work,” he
ingly they are sophisticated, innovative, and com- recalls during an exclusive interview at his com-
petitive businesses in their own right, and custom- pany’s headquarters overlooking Hong Kong In-
er experience has become a key business driver.” ternational Airport. 13
Today, airports offer shopping malls, dining, Song opened his first lounge in July 1998 in
gyms, entertainment and culture. South Korea’s Hong Kong’s then-brand new international air-
Incheon International Airport has free nap spac- port, and open his second lounge a few weeks
es, shower facilities and an ice skating rink, while later in the Kuala Lumpur International Air-
Singapore’s new Jewel facility at Changi Airport port. Doubling as his office, that first lounge— ENTREPRENEURS





















































is a shopping complex that includes the world’s with close to $130,000 monthly rent—almost
tallest indoor waterfall, tropical gardens and a gi- broke him. “I soon ran out of money,” says Song.
ant glass atrium. The $2.6 billion Skycity project, It didn’t help that the Asia financial crisis was in
covering 25ha and being built next to Hong Kong full swing at the time.
International Airport, will offer entertainment, Despite the crisis, money started to roll in that
shopping and dining to travelers and residents. summer when he signed his first corporate cli-
ent, Citibank. It took six months, he says, to con-
It wasn’t always like this. Song was a globetrot- vince the bank that adding his lounge to its card-
ting banker flying business class for the former holder loyalty program would be a good idea.
Lehman Brothers in the late 1980s, first in New “It’s unique value—it was the world’s first airport
York and then Hong Kong. In 1991, though, he lounge open to all travelers—that won them over
quit to become an entrepreneur, opening a ser- in the end,” Song says. “It was not easy because it
viced office business called Plaza Business Centre. was a new business.”
As an entrepreneur, he could then only afford Business slowly grew over the next several years,
coach. Plunged into the no-frills wilderness of helped as Asia and air traffic in the region recov-
economy class, Song saw opportunity: if airline ered. Song tided himself over by selling the ser-


MAR CH 2020 F ORBES A SIA

London’s Heathrow airport asked Song to open a
lounge as an alternative to its own long-time local
lounge operator. Since opening one lounge there,
Song has opened five more at Heathrow and an
airport hotel, and he runs three lounges in the
Hong Kong airport.
14
Plaza Premium has a bright future. Notwith-
standing the recent skid in air travel due to the
ENTREPRENEURS ing skyward. The number of people traveling by
coronavirus outbreak, industry growth is point-

air has been growing at roughly 7% a year for five
years, with airports worldwide handling 1.8 bil-
lion international passengers in 2018, according
to the International Civil Aviation Organization.
Traffic in Asia is likely to bounce back strong-
ly once the virus threat fades away, says Vinoop
Goel, regional director for airports and external
relations for Asia-Pacific at the International Air
Transport Association. “If we look at the SARS
outbreak in 2003, monthly international passen-
ger traffic returned to precrisis levels within nine
months,” Goel says.
Song sees the best opportunities in China, In-
viced office business for an undisclosed amount in From top: reception dia and Indonesia, rather than the mature U.S.
at Aerotel Beijing
2005 to U.K.-listed Regus, now known as IWG, and seating area market. “Most airports in America are very old.
earning what he says was a tidy profit. at Plaza Premium It’s very challenging for them to find space,” he
Lounge Dubai.
The Citi deal established what remains Pla- says. “It takes time. That’s why we are expanding
za Premium’s business model: while passengers faster in the Asia Pacific.”
can dole out between $45 and $50 for two hours As China opens airport services to foreign in-
of access to the lounge, most use loyalty points vestment, Song already has a foot in the door. For
earned from reward programs with other mer- the past several years, Plaza Premium has man-
chants. Plaza Premium rents space from the air- aged lounges at airports in Beijing and Guang-
port and then collects a fee from merchants for zhou. More recently it began operating a lounge
each loyalty customer it serves. in Shanghai with China Eastern Airlines.
Eventually, Plaza Premium was able to sign up Inspired by passengers sleeping on airport
other big clients, including American Express and floors, Song has also diversified Plaza Premium
HSBC, that together contribute 8.8 million visitors into airport hotels, opening 12 Aerotels in just
a year to his lounges. “All these privileges are very four years, including one in September at Bei-
well-received by our customers,” says Lawrence Li, jing’s new Daxing International Airport and an-
head of credit cards and unsecured lending busi- other in October at Heathrow. Aerotels are set
ness in Hong Kong at Citi—also still a client. up for traveler needs, offering hourly rates and
As first mover, Song claims a huge lead over ri- round-the-clock check-in. He’s also upgrading
vals. While industry data is scant, Plaza Premium his lounges with a la carte dining, whisky bars
says it has 70% market share of global independent and other amenities and services.
lounge traffic (excluding lounges operated direct- Song, who estimates he spends half his time
ly by the airlines themselves). Song won’t divulge shuttling between airports to visit his lounges,
specifics, but says sales over the past five years have nowadays gets help from his two children: daugh-
grown 20% a year on average, with lounges in Asia ter Mei Mei works in Plaza Premium’s marketing
contributing 70% of total sales, and that the com- and branding department and her younger broth-
pany has been profitable for most of its 21 years. He er Jonathan in global strategic development.
has been quoted saying that he has been offered as Song says there’s no pressure on them to take COURTESY OF PLAZA PREMIUM GROUP
much as $1 billion to sell the business. over. “My children were not allowed to come to
Song’s company also manages at least 45 loung- work for me before working outside. They can leave
es for airlines, including Cathay Pacific Airways, the company anytime,” he says. As for him, “I enjoy
Singapore Airlines and Thai Airways. In 2014, every minute. I will quit if I don’t enjoy it.”


F ORBES A SIA MAR CH 2020

PROMOTION





KRAFT HEINZ





A RECIPE FOR SUCCESS IN ASIA-PACIFIC




The American food company’s plans for growth come on the back of its rising market share in the
region and new products to appeal to local tastes.




Thai consumers through key products such
as Heinz ketchup and Heinz Oyster, which has
garnered sizable market share, with steady
year-on-year growth.

What do you view as your
company’s key success
factor?
People are the key factor to our success. We
have rigorous selection processes to identify
the right owners to join us, and we invest
heavily in our talent pool.
We also foster transparency and trust
between the employees—and it all starts
with the environment we built. We brought
the entire team into the center of the office in
an open environment. That way information
flows easily and we ensure that we have a
flat organization, which we believe is one
Joao Leitao, Managing Director of ASEAN, India, Hong Kong and APAC Exports of the key factors for us to grow further. We
have a startup environment with the unique
Already one of the world’s leading food Our goal is to be the fastest-growing FMCG advantage of being backed by a strong brand
companies, Kraft Heinz is expanding its busi- (fast-moving consumer goods) company in with significant resources.
ness in Southeast Asia and India to realize its the region, and we also aspire to be the fast-
long-term vision of becoming “The Best Food est-growing business unit in Kraft Heinz. How has Kraft Heinz
Company, Growing a Better World.” Kraft built diversity into the
Heinz products have graced dining tables for Why has Kraft Heinz decided organization?
more than 150 years. to expand in the region? An important part of the company’s strategy
Joao Leitao, Managing Director of ASEAN, The food Industry has been continually is fostering diversity among its teams by
India, Hong Kong and APAC Exports—the growing, especially in the so-called Kitchen ensuring a robust mix of talent from different
business unit established to drive expansion of the World, Southeast Asia and the Indian nationalities, genders and experiences.
in the region—shares the company’s plans. subcontinent. These markets each have their Reflecting this commitment, we have a
own characteristics, so in 2019, we launched higher ratio of female leaders in senior
What are your goals for the relevant products in top categories that are management positions in our region.
region? relevant to the local palate, such as authentic We strive to create a work environment
Our business unit was set up to achieve Asian sauces like Heinz Oyster Sauce in that encourages people in the organiza-
annual double-digit growth in Southeast Thailand and ABC Soy Sauce in Malaysia. tion to have respect for others and to work
Asia, India, Hong Kong and Taiwan. On top together regardless of their differences. We
of that, we are also responsible for exporting What are some of your key believe this unique corporate culture is the
our portfolio of authentic Asian brands to the markets in the region? secret ingredient that can help us succeed.
U.S., Europe and other geographies globally. Hong Kong, Thailand and Malaysia are
Apart from the flagship Heinz and Kraft our current core markets, while India, the
offerings, the company is also responsible for Philippines and Vietnam are the fast-growing
other market-leading brands in the region, markets in our portfolio. We have great plans
including Lea & Perrins, A1 sauce, Australia’s for the whole region.
Golden Circle and New Zealand's bestselling In Thailand, for example, the company is
Watties brands. aiming to become a “top-of-mind brand” for www.kraftheinzcompany.com

ENTREPRENEURS
By Steven Bertoni Photograph by Jamel Toppin for Forbes









Kevin Durant’s Hardest
16



Three-Point Play







The NBA superstar has three goals: a return to dominance, a defining championship
and a lasting business empire.






Durant’s goal is to turn that income into assets at a scale few
athletes not named Jordan or Lebron have attempted.
Brooklyn is Durant’s fourth career stop. He was original-
ly drafted by the Seattle SuperSonics, which soon moved
the franchise to Oklahoma City, where he became a super-
T camped to the Golden State Warriors, he became a cham-
star playing for the Thunder. In the Bay Area, when he de-

pion and an entrepreneur.
In choosing Brooklyn, he seeks to redefine himself. Can
the superstar come back from a devastating injury to dom-
inate the league again? Can he win a championship with a
team centered on him? And can he translate his Silicon Val-
ley lessons to the world capital of capital as well as of me-
The sleek apartment overlook- dia and fashion. “Walking around New York,” Durant says,
ing Manhattan’s High Line park frames the owner of this “there is so much greatness, hard work and determination.”
mansion in the sky, the NBA superstar Kevin Durant, who Durant’s business vehicle: Thirty Five Ventures, co-
is so trim he looks even taller than 208 centimeters. Set- founded with his manager, Rich Kleiman, a music indus-
tling into a blue velvet couch, Durant can toggle between try veteran who previously helped start the sports division
the stunning skyline and his trophy-stacked office, for of Jay-Z’s talent agency, Roc Nation. Thirty Five Ventures
MVP, All-Star and other superlatives. (His two NBA cham- has 15 staff running Durant’s endorsements, foundation,
pionship rings, won with the Golden State Warriors, are in and expanding collection of startups and media plays. Over
the bedroom.) the past few years he’s plowed more than $15 million into
But Durant’s focus is on present challenges rather than 40-plus startups. Nearly 70% of the companies have raised
past wins. Across from his trophy room sit a Pilates ma- subsequent rounds at higher valuations, scoring what Du-
chine and a cagelike strength and balance trainer called a rant claims are paper gains topping 400%.
Sensopro, here to assist a career-saving comeback as he re- More directly, Thirty Five Ventures has a production
habs the Achilles tendon he ruptured during June’s NBA arm creating basketball-themed documentaries, series and
Finals. That season was done—the current one too. “What’s scripted shows for outlets like Apple, YouTube and ESPN.
most important is to take care of my body so I can put my “LeBron James was the first case study that you can build a
product back on the court,” Durant says, fresh from a work- real business while you’re playing,” says Kleiman. “Kevin is
out. “How well you play on the court determines how big building a real and authentic company.”
your business is going to grow.” For Durant, a 30 Under 30 alum who recently hit the
That business starts with a $164 million contract he grand old age of 31, the goal is nothing short of a ten-digit
signed with the Brooklyn Nets this summer and a ten-year, net worth. By the time his playing career is over, he’ll have
$275 million Nike shoe deal that assumes his continued su- made well over $500 million from salary and sponsorships.
perstardom. With those two alone, he will earn more than Now, Durant says, “I want to use the checks I get from com-
$70 million this season without suiting up for a single game. panies to create true generational wealth.”


F ORBES A SIA MAR CH 2020

17

Durant was raised by his mother in Prince
George’s County, Maryland, outside Wash-
ington, D.C., in a rough neighborhood. By
middle school, he was 183 centimeters and
mostly looking down. By 17, he was the MVP
18 of McDonald’s High School All-American
Game. By 18, College Player of the Year at
the University of Texas. By 19, NBA Rookie
ENTREPRENEURS MVP recognition and several runs at the
of the Year. And so on, all the way to league

crown with the Thunder and then his 2016
decision to join the team he couldn’t beat—
signing a $54 million contract with the War-
riors. The move would forever alter his brand
and his business.
Durant first took an interest in the money
game when he was weighing competing en-
dorsement offers from Nike and Under Ar-
mour in 2014: “I learned a lot about the busi-
ness side through that. It really broke things
down for me.” Oklahoma City offered slim
options. “There’s oil and real estate,” Durant
says, “but that was a real old boys’ club, and
it was hard to break into.” With one foot still
in the oil patch, Durant and Kleiman waded
into the tech world, lobbying to invest in the
delivery startup Postmates and the robo-in-
vestor Acorns.
In the Bay Area as a Golden State Warrior,
though, he had VIP access to the world’s hot-
test startups. “All the founders and investors
come [to Warriors games], and you get to
interact with and meet them,” Durant says.
“They look like normal people, but they are
changing the world so fast and have so much
power.”
Durant soon struck up friendships with
the likes of Marc Andreessen, Airbnb’s Brian
Chesky and Joe Gebbia, and executives from
Google and Apple. In the Silicon Valley start-
up scene, Durant money was sexy, attracting
press, street cred and customers. Soon came
investments in cryptocurrency exchange
Coinbase, financial app Robinhood, L.A.-
based streaming service Caffeine TV, Imper-
fect Food, Lime scooters and more.
“He learned about what it takes to start
companies and invest in companies,” says
Eddy Cue, the head of Apple’s vast inter-
net software and services division, who first
met Durant for dinner and then talked un-
til 3 a.m. “When you’re winning, everyone’s
interested in learning what makes you tick,
and Kevin was smart to take full advantage of
NBA superstar Kevin Durant
meeting people.” is #7 of the Brooklyn Nets


F ORBES A SIA MAR CH 2020

He will earn more So will this playbook work in New York?
“New York will be the culmination of the dif-

than $70 million ferent communities Kevin’s touched, and it
will take our company to the next level,” says
Kleiman, who met Durant originally through
this season without a mutual friend, the musician Wale, at a 19

Jay-Z concert. From his loft, he can walk to
suiting up for a Thirty Five’s soon-to-open 418sqm Chelsea
headquarters.
single game. ing onto deals, New York is about owning his
If the Bay Area was about Durant latch-

own media. There’s Swagger, a scripted se- ENTREPRENEURS
ries based on Durant’s early life backed by the
Hollywood titan Brian Grazer; it’ll be distrib-
uted on Apple’s new streaming service (thanks
in part to his friendship with Cue, the Apple
executive). Lower-budget series and shorts
live on his YouTube channel, which now ap-
proaches 800,000 subscribers. Durant’s fran-
MJ VS. LBJ VS. KD chise, The Boardroom, covers the business

HOW KEVIN DURANT POSTS UP AGAINST MICHAEL JORDAN around elite athletes with a website, newslet-
AND LEBRON JAMES ON (AND OFF) THE COURT. ter and ESPN show. “The younger generation
is looking for access and authenticity,” says
ESPN president James Pitaro.
All these initiatives could yield ten-bag-
ger results. The secret sits in those workout
machines in Durant’s apartment. No player
of Durant’s caliber has ever returned from a
MICHAEL JORDAN LEBRON JAMES KEVIN DURANT
ruptured Achilles to the same level of domi-
AGE nance. No player in almost half a century has

brought an NBA trophy to the country’s larg-
56
31
35
est city, one mad for basketball. “The team is
NBA DRAFT PICK
in the garage stage, where we are putting the

idea together. It’s more intimate, everyone
1
3
2
NBA TITLES understands the goal and has a fresh experi-
ence,” Durant says. “A championship would
6 3 2
be a whole other level, but injecting a new en-
INSTAGRAM FOLLOWING ergy into a city through basketball would be
even cooler.”
19.1 Million 53.5 Million 11.6 Million
@jumpman23 @KingJames @easymoneysniper While Acorns and Lime scooters will suc-
ceed or fail without him, with his new initia-
NBA CAREER EARNINGS1
tives and his own assets, he controls his des-
$90 Million $307 Million $224 Million tiny—and sees no limits. “I want to own and
(1984-1993, 1995-1998, (2003-present) (2007-present)
2001-2003) run an NBA team—run day-to-day operations
and impact young players coming through the
2019 NIKE SNEAKER DEAL
league,” he says, ticking off the path that Mi-
$130 Million BEST INVESTMENTS $26 Million chael Jordan took to become a billionaire.
$32 Million
AL BELLO / GETTY IMAGES Charlotte Hornets DISCARDED NICKNAME Coinbase, Postmates forward to touch the floor of his apartment
“I started down here,” Durant adds, leaning
with his gigantic hand. “I know there’ll be kids
Blaze Pizza, Liverpool FC
popping up in my family, and I want them to
start above this roof. The only way to get there

for your family is to create money, and I want
The Akron Hammer
Magic
Durantula
to do it in a cooler way, not just being greedy
1 Not adjusted for inflation and accumulating as much as I can.”
MAR CH 2020 F ORBES A SIA

ENTREPRENEURS
By Vicky Valet Photograph by Michael Prince for Forbes



LinkedIn for



the Working Class
20





Jobcase is building a social networking site for warehouse employees and waitresses.















S













Sasha Contreras despaired
when she had to quit her $12-an-hour Xerox
customer service job and uproot her life in Yelm,
Washington. Her husband was starting work as
a chef at a casino in rural Mississippi in Febru-
ary 2016. A year later she discovered he was hav-
ing an affair. Unemployed and alone, she spent
every waking moment searching Google for jobs,
then discovered Jobcase, a social media job-
search platform for blue-collar and service-in-
dustry workers.
“That site literally changed my life,” says Con-
treras, 55. A free sign-up granted her access to
millions of job listings and a stream of helpful
posts written by strangers, many of whom were
also searching for work. Through a link posted
by a member, in late July 2017 she got a custom-
er service job that paid $10 an hour. Two years
later Jobcase led her to another customer service
job that paid $13 an hour. Though she’s not look-
ing to make a move, she logs on to Jobcase daily.
“If I see something that touches me, I’ll respond
because I remember what it was like to be look- complish—create a site where the 80% of work- Jobcase founder
ing,” she says. ing-age Americans without a four-year college de- Frederick Goff at
his headquarters
“We’ve got to do this for everybody,” says Fred- gree can network, find jobs and manage their ca- in Cambridge,
Massachusetts. In 1991
erick Goff, Jobcase’s founder and CEO, after hear- reers. (A LinkedIn spokesperson says its mission he hitchhiked from
ing Contreras’ story. When he founded the Cam- has always been to support the entire workforce.) Toledo to New York
City to land his first
bridge, Massachusetts-based company in 2015, he Goff has raised $118.5 million at a valuation full-time job.
set out to do what LinkedIn hasn’t been able to ac- for Jobcase that Pitchbook has at $445 million.


F ORBES A SIA MAR CH 2020

The company’s $100 million in revenue last year ledo. He worked a stint as an options trader in
came from 2,000 companies including Amazon, New York before earning a second master’s, in
Pizza Hut and FedEx, according to Goff. They pay technology management, at MIT. He endured
from $199 for a single job posting to as much as another recession and took a job he didn’t re-
$5,000 for a hiring event organized by Jobcase. ally want as CIO at an Oklahoma City energy
Jobcase has already signed up 115 million of company before landing at a Cambridge hedge
the 197 million Americans it’s targeting, and fund, Percipio Capital Management, as CEO. Af- 21
Goff plans to take the site global in the next 18 ter the company went under in the 2008 finan-
months. In the G20 countries, 84% of people cial crisis, he persuaded his partners to back him
don’t have college degrees. Tapping that market, in newly formed Percipio Media, a firm that cre-
he says, will put his company on a fast track to a ated no-frills job boards that aggregated listings
billion members and a $1 billion valuation. from other sites.
The company did well, but in 2014, at an HR ENTREPRENEURS
conference in Las Vegas, he realized the people
searching his job boards needed support. Linke-
dIn, with its polished, résumé-like profiles, of-
fered nothing for his buddies back in Toledo toil-
ing away at Kinko’s. Goff moved Percipio’s job
boards into a subsidiary, reorganized his team
and launched Jobcase. He says his priority was
to build a “community.” Its core is the stream of
posts that gave Sasha Contreras emotional sup-
port during her five-month job search.
How many members find work through the
site? Of the 31 interviewed for this story (Forbes
contacted all but two independently), only two
landed jobs through Jobcase. But all said they
liked the community. “It’s been a really good fo-
rum to rant,” says Rhonda Yates, 52, a member
who found work through another site as a pro-
duction scheduler at a packaging supplier in
Lexington, Kentucky.
Most members don’t report when they land
jobs, but Goff estimates 1 million, or 1%, found
work through Jobcase last year. That tiny ratio
doesn’t discourage employers. At a time of re-
cord-low unemployment, companies don’t ex-
pect listings will lead directly to applications,
says JR Keller, a professor of human resource
studies at Cornell. “Companies are just so des-
perate to find really good people that if you have
a community of 100 million people, they’re go-
ing to post a job there because they don’t want to
miss out,” he says.
Jobcase was profitable from the get-go, says
Goff, but since early 2018 he has been plow-
ing money into recruiting members. In June
he sponsored the Chicago Urban League’s city-
wide job fair and walked away with 8,000 new
Goff, 52, relates to the challenges his mem- members.
bers face. His father, a former marine, worked as Goff dreams of a world where Jobcase has so
a transmission repairman at a Chrysler plant in much visibility that workers will be able to use
Toledo, before becoming a life insurance sales- the platform to advocate for better conditions at
man. Goff earned a master’s at Carnegie Mel- work. “We want to support capitalism by putting
lon, but he graduated into the 1990 recession not just shareholder value but worker value at the
and spent four months washing dishes in To- top,” he says. “It starts with the members.”


MAR CH 2020 F ORBES A SIA

PROMOTION





HANDA WATCH WORLD X



DUSTIN HOFFMAN





The U.S. screen legend shared the meaning of life during his recent visit to Japan.


























































Dustin Lee Hoffman was born in 1937 in California. After a year at Santa Monica City College, he moved to New York to pursue acting in the 1960s.
His film debut “The Tiger Makes Out” (1967) was followed by his breakthrough role in “The Graduate” the same year. Hoffman has appeared in
numerous films and won an Academy Award for Best Actor for “Kramer vs. Kramer” (1979) and “Rain Man” (1988).



Last December, renowned American actor Television Arts, six Golden Globes and two “I want to be with my family when I’m
Dustin Hoffman made a guest appearance Emmys. No one can doubt his contribution filming. If I am shooting in Japan, I’d want
at the Tenkomori Art Exhibition hosted by to the art of cinema. them to stay here for a few months with me,
the Tokyo Art Foundation and cosponsored As many Hollywood movies are made but unfortunately that kind of opportunity is
by Misuzu Corp. Before the event, Hoffman with overseas audiences in mind, premier hard to come by,” he says.
discussed his life in the arts. screenings featuring the leading actors and As an actor who follows strict routines to
By the 1990s, Dustin Hoffman was a executives are major events around the improve his performances, Hoffman values
household name following his acclaimed world. Although Hoffman receives countless time with his family above all else. Why, then,
performances in a string of hit films, invitations, he rarely attends events outside did he decide to squeeze a few days into his
including “The Graduate” (1967), “Midnight his home country. extremely busy schedule for his third visit to
Cowboy” (1969), “Kramer vs. Kramer” (1979) Naturally, there’s a reason. When he first Japan at the end of the year?
and “Tootsie” (1982). In addition to two decided to become an actor, he vowed to “Japan is one of my favorite countries,”
Academy Awards for Best Actor, he has dedicate all of his time to his art and his Hoffman explains. “I’m very impressed by
earned numerous honors as a performer, family, and at the age of 82, he continues to Japanese courtesy and the culture of respect
including four British Academy of Film and live by this philosophy. for others. When I was studying drama in




2

PROMOTION





my 20s, there were two actors I admired:
One was Marlon Brando, and the other
was Toshiro Mifune [the star of several films
directed by legendary Japanese filmmaker
Akira Kurosawa]. I’ve seen a lot of Kurosawa
films and I’m always impressed by his way of
directing.
“My reason for coming to Japan this
time is to meet someone who’s been
called ‘a modern-day Renaissance man,’ a
businessman who sings Italian opera and is
renowned as an artist,” he says.
The person Hoffman wanted to meet is
Haruhisa Handa, President of Misuzu Corp.,
which runs Handa Watch World. The actor
says he strongly empathizes with Handa’s
dedication to social contribution.


The True Meaning of Charity
“In recent years, terrorist attacks have
become more common all over the world.
Natural disasters caused by climate change
have increased, killing many. We hear about
all of this on the news, but once things calm
down, we forget. Some of the survivors of
these tragedies have been seriously injured
and need help. Haruhisa Handa understands
that it takes time to come to terms with
these events. He has set up hospitals in
conflict zones to care for those in distress The Tenkomori Art Exhibition, cosponsored by Misuzu Corp., took place in Tokyo Dec. 6-10.
and supports the injured through sports- Traveling with his wife, Hoffman made a special guest appearance at the show.
related activities. It’s amazing,” Hoffman says.
Handa is the Chairperson of the
International Sports Promotion Society I went, it was completely different to what “An actor has to condense a life of 10, 20 or
(ISPS), which supports a variety of sporting I’d imagined. By feeling close to death, 50 years into the span of two hours. It’s never
activities worldwide. One of the most the children probably understood the easy. Sometimes it takes more than a year to
famous ISPS events is the PGA “Pro-Amateur” importance of living in the moment. The learn a part, and every film is a big challenge.
golf tournament, which gives blind and children were communing with nature and Once I am given the role, I research every
disabled golfers the opportunity to play with learning how to live. The place was full of angle about the character to understand
top golfers. vitality. Being with other kids in the same how his personality developed from birth. I
Hoffman has supported similar charity situation created a sense of camaraderie and have to understand the character’s thoughts
work and describes establishing a camp for they encouraged each other. It’s something and motivations for his behaviors,” he says.
children with cancer as one of his greatest I’ll never forget,” Hoffman recalls. “I realized In all endeavors, Hoffman never fails to get
achievements. that I was stupid to doubt the strength to the heart of the matter. He concludes the
“A long time ago, my wife’s cousin got of those kids. They’re much smarter and interview with a few words of wisdom: “No
leukemia at the age of six,” Hoffman says. stronger than me.” one is perfect. Everybody has their strengths
“Although she was forbidden from playing and weaknesses. But accepting yourself is no
outside, she longed to go to camp, but there Inhabiting a Character easy task. At least in my case, even though I
was no camp for kids with leukemia at that Hoffman is a method actor who believes want to be a great person, I’m still struggling
time. That memory stayed with me, so I that actors must fully inhabit the experiences to become my ideal self. It’s the effort that
founded a campsite for children with cancer. and emotions of a character to play the part counts, and I’ll keep trying for the rest of my
There was a hospital nearby, and helicopters effectively. For his role as Raymond Babbitt in life.”
were on hand to take the children there in the 1988 film “Rain Man,” Hoffman spent two
case of an emergency. years getting to know people with autism. He
“Visitors were allowed, but I didn’t have used insights gained through observations Contact information:
the courage to go at first because I didn’t and interviews with one individual in Misuzu Corporation
know if the children were enjoying it. I was particular—a man with savant syndrome— 81-3-3247-5585
worried that they might be sad. But when to develop Raymond’s character. www.misuzu.com



TECHNOLOGY
By Ulisari Eslita and Ester Christine Natalia Photograph by Ully Zulkarnain for Forbes Indonesia






Game Changer


25



WILLIAM TANUWIJAYA built Tokopedia into Southeast Asia’s third-largest unicorn,
and he’s not done yet.






an estimated 222 trillion rupiah last year ($16 bil-
lion). It has about 90 million users, roughly one-
third the country’s population of 260 million. To-
kopedia’s business model is similar to Alibaba's, a
marketplace where any business can easily set up
W kopedia’s biggest investors). To date, Tokopedia
and sell their goods (and Alibaba is now one of To-

has 7 million merchants on its site, from small en-
trepreneurial firms all the way to large local firms
and multinationals. To further boost growth,
Tanuwijaya last year made a major acquisition,
buying the Indonesian e-commerce site Bridesto-
ry and its related Parentstory last June for a re-
William Tanuwijaya, the ported $30 million. The two sites offer goods and
cofounder of Indonesian e-commerce giant To- services for soon-to-be newlyweds and parents.
kopedia, says he had little love of his company’s Tanuwijaya isn’t slowing down. In the last few
name for years. “I actually disliked the name To- years, Tanuwijaya, who is CEO, has been expand-
kopedia because it was too long. We initially used ing Tokopedia far beyond its core e-commerce
it only as a project name,” says Tanuwijaya. “We services, into areas such as fintech, travel book-
wanted to change it on our fifth or sixth anniver- ings and logistics. In 2018, he launched an am-
sary, but we still could not find any better name. bitious plan to entrench Tokopedia even more
What can I say? It’s serendipity.” deeply into the Indonesia’s $1 trillion economy,
Now Tokopedia’s name is hard to miss. It is the largest in Southeast Asia.
part of Jakarta’s skyline, plastered in one story- That year Tokopedia launched the app Mitra
high letters across the top of Tokopedia Tower, Tokopedia, which has been downloaded more
a 52-storey building in central Jakarta, which Tokopedia Tower, than 1 million times. The app is designed for own-
a 52-story building
serve as the company’s headquarters (Tanuwi- in central Jakarta, ers of warung, a small open-air store that typical-
jaya’s office is also on the top floor). Jakartans which serves as ly serve a single neighborhood—of which there
the company’s
can see it both day and especially at night, when headquarters. are an estimated two million across the country.
the bright green letters are lit up. The app gives warung
Another hard-to-miss aspect of Tokopedia is owners two big advan-
its $7 billion valuation, making it the third most- tages: one is to order
valuable unicorn in Southeast Asia, behind only goods for their warung
Singapore’s Grab and Indonesia’s Gojek, accord- that will be delivered at
ing to U.S. consultancy CB Insights. Tokopedia prices lower than what
also has a huge lead over its next closest Indone- they pay local distribu-
COURTESY OF TOKOPEDIA also in value, at about $2 billion, less than one- fer products from Toko-
tors, and second is to of-
sian rival, Bukalapak, by almost every metric and
pedia to customers, es-
third that of Tokopedia.
Tanuwijaya, 38, has been building Tokopedia
pecially those too poor
at a feverish pace. Its gross merchandise volume
to afford smartphones
(GMV) has grown 100-fold in the last five years, to


F ORBES A SIA
MAR CH 2020 or internet services.

Tanuwijaya’s biggest step of all is a planned at a time when access was still relatively inconve-
IPO for Tokopedia, which could happen as ear- nient and expensive in Indonesia.
ly as this year and would make it the first of In- “I fell in love with the internet from then on—
donesia’s five unicorns to go public. The company it was a blessing in disguise, although it was also
has already announced that a round of fundrais- a struggle to study in the morning after working
26 ing underway this quarter—for an expected $1.5 all night long,” he says, adding that working the
billion—will be its last before the IPO. To prepare night shift inspired Tokopedia’s owl logo.
the company for a listing, the company last year In 2007, he got the idea of starting a site that
Y appointed Agus Martowardojo as its president William Tanuwijaya would allow anyone from across the archipelago
and Leontinus
OG commissioner. Alpha Edison during nation to easily sell their products online. He in-
Tokopedia's early days.
CHNOL vited his college buddy Leontinus Alpha Edison,
now 38, to join him. The pair registered the do-

TE main name Tokopedia, which combined the In-
donesian word for shop, toko, with “pedia.”
At first, Tanuwijaya and Edison could only de-
velop the site as a side project while working full-
time at content provider company PT Indocom
Mediatama, where Tanuwijaya was the IT and
business development manager and Edison the
general manager. While the site was still in devel-
opment, they asked their boss Victor Fungkong
to become an angel investor. At first skeptical,
Fungkong eventually took an 80% stake for 1 bil-
lion rupiah in 2009 (with the founders holding
the rest). The pair officially launched Tokopedia
on what they hoped would be an auspicious date:
August 17—Indonesia’s independence day. To-
day, Fungkong remains a shareholder, although
his ownership has been diluted.
This move gives Tokopedia a huge boost in In the early years, Tokopedia only had four em-
credibility, as Martowardojo is one of the most ployees, including Tanuwijaya and Edison, and
respected financial figures in the country. He was less than 100 merchants on the site. On week-
both Indonesia’s finance minister and head of its ends, Tanuwijaya and Edison would take turns
central bank, and ran one of its largest banks, running the site and sleep in shifts. A year after
Bank Mandiri, for five years. Tokopedia has said the launch, local investment firm East Ventures
that it would like to have a dual listing, on the In- became the first VC to invest in the company.
donesia Stock Exchange and one other, as yet un- “Ten years ago, Indonesia had nothing; no digital
announced, exchange. economy and no funding ecosystem. But Tanu-
An IPO would be a capstone on Tanuwijaya’s wijaya and Edison stood out when we met them
journey to build Tokopedia, which just passed its for the first time, the next day we sealed the deal.
one-decade mark in business last year. “Our first Their business model and numbers were similar COURTESY OF TOKOPEDIA
10-year vision is to be a technology company that to other early-stage startups, but their passion
helps anyone who wants to be an e-commerce and fire were different,” says Willson Cuaca, co-
company,” he says. founder and managing partner of East Ventures.


Tanuwijaya comes from Pematang Siantar, a
small city in North Sumatra. Upon graduating Tokopedia Funding History
from high school, his family sent him to study IT
at Jakarta’s Bina Nusantara University. Things
got tough when his father, who worked in a ciga- 2009 2010 2011
rette factory, contracted cancer in his sophomore
year. To make ends meet, he took a side job as SERIES ANGEL A B
an internet cafe operator. The shifts were long Amount 1 billion rupiah Undisclosed $700,000
and tiring, from 9 p.m. to 9 a.m., but it also gave Funding by PT Indonusa East Ventures CyberAgent
Tanuwijaya a chance to learn about the internet, Dwitama Ventures


F ORBES A SIA MAR CH 2020

More than
TOKOPEDIA’S IMPACT IN

Aceh JOBS CREATION AND East Kalimantan 90 mil
0.26 REGIONAL ECONOMY 0.93 Monthly active users

(ALL FIGURES IN TRILLION RUPIAH) More than

North Sulawesi 5 mil 27
0.16
Sellers TE
DKI Jakarta
207,117 CHNOL
16.42


North Sumatra OG
Y
21,746
2.79 Bali
25,699 South Sulawesi
0.82 7,194


West Java
172,348
11.36 East Java West Nusa New Jobs
112,488 Tenggara Regional
SOURCE: LPEM FEB UI 3,001 Economy





Many others followed, not only Alibaba, but guarantee that all goods sold through this chan-
also India’s Sequoia Capital and SoftBank Vi- nel will be 100% genuine. The charge for this ser-
sion Fund. One goal eagerly awaited by investors: 96% vice is a hefty 15% sales commission, but in re-
profits. “We are confident it will get to break- turn merchants get dedicated help from Tokope-
even and profits,” says Shailendra Singh, manag- dia and other special services. The Official Store
ing director of Sequoia Capital India, in the “next has signed up 3,000 sellers, and has been par-
few years.” Tokopedia sellers ticularly popular with large multinationals that
To get into the black, Tokopedia has been build- are located in must protect their brands, such as King Koil,
96% of cities
ing its paid services. While the basic service is in Indonesia Procter & Gamble and Samsung.
free—any seller can register to sell over the site by As Tokopedia enters its second decade, Tanu-
submitting just an email address and cell phone wijaya offers his outlook on how Tokopedia
number—the company has offered paid premium should evolve. “In the next 10 years, we want to
services since 2013. For a fee, these merchants get be a technology company that can help anyone
perks such as promotions, free shipping and mar- who wants to be a technology company,” Tanu-
ket research done by Tokopedia. One tier of mem- wijaya says. “All businesses in Indonesia will be
bership, Power Merchants, pay a 1% commission a technology company by having Tokopedia as
on all goods sold over the site. their partner. That’s our vision.”
Another initiative, launched last year, was to
combat the problem of counterfeit goods online. This article has been adapted from Forbes Indo-
Tokopedia launched its Official Store with the nesia, a licensee edition of Forbes Media.





2012 2013 2014 2016 2017 2018


C D E E F G
Undisclosed Undisclosed $100 million $147 million $1.1 billion $1.1 billion
Beenos Softbank Ventures SoftBank Telecom Corp, undisclosed Alibaba Group SoftBank Vision Fund
Partner Korea Sequoia Capital and investor and Alibaba Group
SoftBank Ventures Korea

MAR CH 2020 F ORBES A SIA

TECHNOLOGY
By Jillian D’Onfro Photograph by Tim Pannell for Forbes










28































































Genius



Drugs




From



Dumb beat human expertise in the
Can a giant pile of data


design of miracle drugs?
Silicon DAPHNE KOLLER may come

up with a surprising answer.




F ORBES A SIA MAR CH 2020

29

F TE







CHNOL


Y
Few scientists get solicited for pho- OG
to ops, but for Daphne Koller it’s a regular occurrence. “It
happens at pretty much any event that has tech people,”
Koller says. “It’s a little awkward. It’s not like I feel like this
is something I deserve.” Selfie requests are just one sign of
Koller’s stardom, earned from more than 20 years bridging
computer science, biology and education.
She has chalked up a string of accolades: getting a mas-
ter’s degree from Jerusalem’s Hebrew University at 18; be- A peek inside Insitro's South San Francisco lab.
coming a Stanford University professor focused on machine
learning at 26; winning, nearly a decade later, a MacArthur
“genius grant” for research that combined artificial intel- “There are very few individuals who understand both sides
ligence and genomics; cofounding $1 billion (valuation) of the beast,” says Mani Subramanian, who heads liver dis-
Coursera, a platform that offers university classes for free. ease clinical research at Gilead. “The biology as well as the
The next act for this 51-year-old innovator: Insitro, a San deep learning.”
Francisco firm that aims to find new drugs with data. If In- Future payouts from Gilead hang on whether Insitro can
sitro succeeds, it will disrupt how drugs get discovered. Sci- identify five proteins that could be targets for drugs and then
entists typically focus on a few specific proteins as drug tar- whether targeting those proteins leads to approved thera-
gets—If those fail, they make suggestions for others to try. pies for the liver disease. The contingent payments, which
Insitro, meanwhile, wants to collect much more data be- include revenue sharing from successful drugs, helped In-
fore the biologists go on a hunt. It will leverage advances in sitro earn a spot on Forbes’ inaugural AI 50 list of the most
bioengineering and software that enables computers to see promising AI companies.
things that escape humans. More than 20 other startups are chasing the dream of
Koller describes her aha moment: “Machine learning is faster, cheaper drug discovery through AI including Nota-
now doing amazing things if you give it enough data. We ble Labs, with $55 million raised, and Verge Genomics, with
finally have the opportunity to create biological data at $36 million. Novartis has announced a five-year AI collab-
scale.” Insitro’s computer experts and biologists work to- oration with Microsoft, and Merck and GSK have startup
gether to create lab experiments to produce massive cus- partnerships as well.
tom data sets. Machine learning models then find patterns AI isn’t a magic bullet. “I don’t think the platform can
to suggest new tests and potential therapies. Robotics like be magic,” Koller says. Before Insitro can reap rewards, a
automated pipetting machines reduce human error. With few hundred thousand lab tests need to happen. Koller
all this, Insitro can do experiments in a matter of weeks in- seems undaunted, bouncing around Insitro’s office—she
stead of years. gave away her desk chair to one of her 53 employees be-
JILLIAN D'ONFRO FOR FORBES Ventures, Andreessen Horowitz, Foresite Capital, Alpha- ment. Big Pharma’s interest appears to make Insitro a like-
cause she never used it—to show off the latest lab equip-
To start Insitro, Koller raised $100 million from ARCH
bet’s venture fund GV and Third Rock, with Jeff Bezos and
ly acquisition target if it hits pay dirt. But Koller says she
others joining later—all within six months. Last April,
doesn’t want Insitro “swallowed into the maw” of a larger
organization, but instead make its own branded drugs. The
she landed a deal with Gilead Sciences for $15 million
ultimate goal, she says, is one day to hear someone say: “Be-
now with $1 billion to follow if Insitro helps find a treat-
ment for a deadly form of nonalcoholic fatty liver disease.


MAR CH 2020 cause of you, I have my life back.” F ORBES A SIA

TECHNOLOGY
By Angel Au-Yeung Photograph by Timothy Archibald for Forbes



Roku Redo





30



ANTHONY WOOD is betting Roku’s future on what viewers hate: advertising.






















































D thing consumers are said to loathe: advertising. Serial entrepreneur






It’s a necessary pivot. Roku’s original business,
Los Gatos, California,
selling inexpensive dongles that let TV viewers Anthony Wood at the
headquarters of Roku.
The name means
tap into the internet to stream 500,000 movies “six” in Japanese, a
and TV episodes from Netflix, Disney and many nod to his half-dozen
business ventures.
DVRs and Netflix have more, is a low-margin one that has never turned a
taught a generation to hate commercials. An- profit. Even worse, streaming has become a com-
thony Wood should know—he created one of modity, with streaming apps integrated into any-
the first DVRs that allowed viewers to skip com- thing that can get online, from PlayStation con-
mercials, and he also worked briefly at Netflix, soles to tablets to smart TVs. Wood, 54, is now
directly under its cofounder Reed Hastings. But betting that Roku can move beyond its hardware
Wood’s latest pivot, in the midst of the streaming business into a more lucrative software business:
media revolution, has been to bet the future of measuring the reach and effectiveness of ads on
his streaming device company, Roku, on the very streaming apps.


F ORBES A SIA MAR CH 2020

“Traditionally, the only way you would measure Undaunted, Wood founded Roku in 2002. He
a TV ad is through Nielsen ratings, which could cold-called Netflix’s Reed Hastings and asked
tell you roughly how many people have watched him to lunch. Hastings took the meeting. “I guess The Vault
it,” Wood says. “Our measurement is very precise, he’d heard of me because of Replay,” Wood says. TIVO’S TROUBLES
where we can tell a company that out of everyone Hastings invited Wood to join Netflix as vice
who saw your ad, 5% went to your website and president of Internet TV in 2007 and guide Net- 31
bought something,” he explains. “We’re bringing flix’s streaming player, code-named Project Grif-
the sort of technology that’s already been around fin, through production. After 10 months, Wood
for a while on the internet to the TV world.” left, at which time Netflix spun Project Griffin TE
Roku does this with in-house measurement into Roku and became an early investor (it sold
tools, but also with 11 partners including New out a few years later). CHNOL
York-based Nielsen in order to tell advertisers Roku sold its first set-top boxes in 2008. This
“Our plan is to run
like clients Jaguar Land Rover and Baskin-Rob- time Wood kept prices low—the first went for OG
as fast as we can,”
bins how their ad campaigns performed against $99.99. Today its cheapest device sells for less vowed Michael Y
which demographics. than a third of that. As of 2018, Roku had nabbed Ramsay, co-
The shift seems to be paying off. In 2015, 84% a 41% market share of streaming media devices— founder and CEO
of Roku’s $320 million in revenue came from more than Amazon Fire TV, Google Chromecast of TiVo. Almost a
year after debut-
hardware; 16%, or $50 million, came from ad- and Apple TV. The business is still growing but ing its little box
vertising and content. Now advertising is the competition is heating up while prices drop. at the Consumer
fastest-growing segment, and those numbers To stay relevant, beginning in 2014 Roku part- Electronics Show
have nearly flipped. Roku doubled down in Oc- nered with several TV makers, including China’s in Vegas, TiVo
had gone public,
tober, announcing a $150 million acquisition of TCL and Hisense and Japan’s Hitachi and Sanyo
reached a $1.4
dataxu, a Boston-based tech outfit that allows cli- Electric, to build its operating systems into TV sets. billion market
ents to plan and buy video ad campaigns. According to Roku, its software is in one in three valuation—and
lost nearly $32
million while ac-
Roku’s stock has rocketed up over 270% thousand dollars in
cumulating a few

since the beginning of 2019. revenue from early
subscribers. The
challenges ahead
for Ramsay and
TiVo were clear:
Investors are loving it. Roku’s stock has rock- smart TVs sold in the U.S. during the first nine “The technology
eted up over 270% since the beginning of 2019, months of 2019. But other TV makers are jump- of searching and
pushing its founder’s net worth to $2.6 billion. ing in: Samsung, the world’s leading TV manufac- recording, which
It recently traded at a rich 12 times sales. “I have turer, announced last May that all of its new smart is not protected
by patents . . . can
no idea why Roku is valued [so high],” says Wed- TVs would come with the Apple TV app built in. easily be copied.”
bush Securities’ Michael Pachter. Roku also faces rivals in the ad world. Media —Forbes, Novem-
Wood’s plan to cater to advertisers comes from conglomerate Viacom bought the free, ad-sup- ber 29, 1999
an early failure. In the early 1990s, figuring there ported streaming service Pluto TV for $340 mil-
had to be a better way to record episodes of his lion in March last year. NBC is launching Pea-
favorite TV show, Star Trek: The Next Genera- cock, its own streaming service with advertising,
tion, than using VHS tapes, he came up with a in July.
DVR. The initial product, marketed as ReplayTV, Wood says he welcomes all entrants. “The ex-
was released in 1999 and cost around $1,000. citing thing for me about the streaming wars is
Big mistake. Rival TiVo sold its boxes for report-
that humongous companies like Disney are all
SHERRY TESLER/THE NEW YORK T IMES/REDUX Santa Clara-based consumer electronics firm Son- that button. These big media players may be al-
going in on streaming,” Wood says. “That’s only
edly under $500 and gobbled up market share.
good for us.” But he might want to press pause on
Low on cash, Wood sold ReplayTV in 2001 to
icBlue for a reported $42 million and stayed to
lies today but foes tomorrow. “Everyone has real-
ized the living room is too important,” wrote Piv-
help run it. To differentiate it from TiVo, Wood re-
leased a version of ReplayTV with an ad-skipping
otal Research CEO Jeffrey Wlodarczak in a Sep-
feature. Bigger mistake. The company was sued
tember report titled “Is Roku Broku?” “And the
by everyone from Paramount to MGM to Disney.
big boys. . . are likely to make Roku growth much
SonicBlue went bankrupt. “We didn’t take indus-
his next pivot soon.
try requirements into account,” Wood now says.

MAR CH 2020 more difficult.” Wood had better start thinking of F ORBES A SIA

COVER STORY














32 32










PETER AND MARTIN LEE

DISCUSS THEIR FIRST YEAR
AS JOINT CHAIRMEN OF

HENDERSON LAND, THEIR
FATHER’S LEGACY AND THEIR

FUTURE PLANS FOR THE

DIVERSIFIED PROPERTY GIANT.

















BUILDING













ICONS



























BY ROBERT OLSEN
PHOTOGRAPHS BY JOCELYN TAM FOR FORBES ASIA

MAR CH 2020

33 33







Peter Lee Ka Kit (left) and
Martin Lee Ka Shing, the sons
of Henderson Land founder
Lee Shau Kee, say it’s been an
eventful time since taking over.

Two International Finance Centre (middle), Hong Kong’s second-tallest skyscraper, which is part of the larger IFC complex.












34



Y
OR
T
S
VER


CO






























→ Hong Kong’s richest man er Martin Lee Ka Shing, 48, answered this ques-
The elder Peter Lee Ka Kit, 56, and the young-

Lee Shau Kee, 92, marked tion—and many more—in an exclusive interview
held in January, the first-ever by the two broth-
a milestone last May when he ers together (the father remains an executive di-
rector on the Henderson Land board).
stepped down from running his new roles—including protests and a recession in
The pair were not given an easy start in their

flagship Henderson Land after Hong Kong, the U.S.-China trade war (Hender-
son has massive mainland China investments)
43 years, and handed the reins and dealing with the coronavirus outbreak.
“There were a lot of things to do in the first year,”
deadpans Martin.
to his two sons, Peter and Martin, They work together, they say, with a solid re-

lationship of mutual respect and trust, formed
making them joint chairmen. So in childhood. “It’s like yin and yang,” says Peter.

During the interview, they often mirror each oth-
how does the pair plan to lead er’s comments. “We each have our own expertise,
and we respect each other’s views,” says Peter.
one of Asia’s largest and most “It’s like a partnership. For more than 15 years, DALE DE LA REY/AFP/GETTY IMAGES
we’ve been working this way. I’m lucky to have
successful real estate firms? my brother with me.”
When their father first raised the topic of suc-
cession with them, the two were already work-
ing at Henderson. Peter joined first, in 1985. Af-


F ORBES A SIA MAR CH 2020

ter a few years, he was handed a crucial assignment. “I was
given the mission to start the business in mainland China
from scratch, so it was not easy,” says Peter. Martin followed
in 1993, first as his father’s personal assistant. Both of them
became vice chairmen, Peter in 1993 and Martin in 2005.
The two are in sync on strategy. “We both agreed that we
wanted to stay, both in China and Hong Kong, and contin-
ue to build on his [Lee Shau Kee’s] achievements,” says Pe- 35
ter. The pair say their father from childhood handed down
(to them) his “golden rules” for success. “He taught us you
have to have a firsthand understanding of the market be-
fore we make a decision,” says Peter. “We can rely on reading
Forbes—it might tell us which city [to invest in], but where
in the city? For that, we have to dive deep.” HENDERSON LAND
While Henderson Land is the flagship company behind
the family’s $30.4 billion fortune, the Lee family also con-
trols five other listed companies that span sectors such as
hotels, tourism and natural gas, as well as having numer-
ous private investments. Henderson has left an indelible
mark across Greater China’s urban landscapes. In Hong
Kong, it codeveloped Two International Finance Centre,
the city’s second-tallest skyscraper (the Lee family and
Henderson uses the 71st to 76th floors). It also developed
the World Financial Centre in Beijing and the Henderson
Metropolitan located on Shanghai’s prestigious Nanjing
road. In late February, the various listed companies con-
trolled by the family had a combined market capitalization
of over $50 billion.


P eter and Martin have a simple but elegant
division of responsibilities. As Peter created
the mainland China business, he continues
to run that. Martin, meanwhile, is respon-
From top: Murray Road project (artist rendering) in Hong Kong’s
sible for Hong Kong. Thus, the pair have Central district and World Financial Centre in Beijing.
divided their roles by geography, and have the final say in
their respective markets. “There’s no challenging each oth-
er’s decision,” says Peter.
As far as strategy goes, they won’t reinvent their father’s face masks to staff. To support tenants, Hender-
wheel. “We will continue to follow his management style, son will cut rents for many in the retail sector by
there’s no point to change it, it is working well,” says Pe- 20% to 60% in February to offset any lower rev-
ter. “But of course, as the world evolves, the business mod- enues. “Our father taught us that we have to not
el has to adapt.” One refinement, for example, is a rebal- just think about our interest but also think about
ancing by Martin of the portfolio in Hong Kong to focus on our partners’ interest,” says Martin.
more commercial projects—where Henderson has long de- Their father, they say, is unfazed—he’s lived
veloped residential ones. through plenty of ups and downs. “You see
The most immediate challenge is coping with current the turmoil in Hong Kong, everybody’s so up-
conditions of recession and protests in Hong Kong, and set, but he says ‘This is nothing. I was in the
the coronavirus across Greater China. The numbers tell war when the Japanese were occupying Hong
the story: Henderson Land’s first-half underlying profit,
Kong. This is nothing to worry about. Why are
COURTESY OF HENDERSON LAND (2) HK$6.7 billion ($860 million) for the first half ended in le. During the Asian financial crisis in 1998,
excluding revaluation gains on properties, dropped 52% to
you guys so worried?’” says Peter, with a chuck-
Lee’s net worth plunged $5 billion—the highest
June last year. Revenue from property sales tumbled 68%
loss in dollar terms for any Asian tycoon during
to HK$2.7 billion.
The brothers’ first priority is to keep their staff safe—
the crisis. Yet he declared in an interview with
Forbes at the time: “Hong Kong is still the best
both from protests and the virus. Martin says new safety
and security measures have been adopted to ensure busi-
place in the world to invest money. We are go-
ness continuity. Henderson Land has been distributing free


MAR CH 2020 ing full speed ahead.” F ORBES A SIA

The 34-story tower there, as yet unnamed,
Family Tree
Lee Shau Kee promises to have a unique design featuring large,
UNCLE FOUR custom-made curved windows and a banquet
hall on the top for up to 500 guests. Scheduled to
The elder Lee is known open in 2023, it was designed by the renowned
as “Uncle Four” for being Zaha Hadid Architects to resemble the bud of
the fourth-born child in a Hong Kong’s official symbol, the bauhinia flower.
36 small-time merchant fam- The total cost of the building, exclusive the cost
ily from Shun Tak in Guang-
dong province. His father’s of the land, could run to about $400 million.
business was an exchange Meanwhile, Peter has been active in mainland
Y for gold, silver and cur-
OR rencies. He recounted China. Henderson Land now has about 6.4 mil-
T that they were so poor at lion square feet of completed investment prop-
S times that they could only erties there, with the bulk in three cities: Bei-
VER afford to eat fish or meat jing, Guangzhou and Shanghai. Unlike Hong


CO twice a month. Lee was 20 Kong, which has a more residential focus, the
years old when he moved
footprint in China is mostly in office and retail
to Hong Kong in 1948 with spaces. He is now working on two huge devel-
HK$1,000 and initially set
up his own venture to trade opments, both branded Lumina, in Guangzhou
in precious metals and currencies. and Shanghai.
Recognizing that Hong Kong would face a chronic Another promising opportunity the broth-
shortage in housing, he shifted to real estate and in 1963 ers are pursuing is the ongoing transformation
cofounded Sun Hung Kai Properties with Fung King Hey and
Kwok Tak Seng, the father of Hong Kong’s billionaire Kwok of their natural gas business, the Hong Kong-
brothers. The trio were dubbed the “Three Musketeers.” based utility firm, Hong Kong and China Gas,
When that partnership ended, Lee went out on his own, known as Towngas. Established in 1862, it was
starting Henderson Land in 1976 and going public on the Hong Kong’s first public utility, supplying gas
Hong Kong stock exchange in 1981. burned in old-fashioned streetlamps. Today the
Lee’s focus on residential and land banking has long been
his hallmark. His first mention on the Forbes’ Billionaires company’s core business remains gas supply,
list, at $1.5 billion in 1991, notes that what Lee “knows best” for cooking and heating, but also has moved
is “building for Hong Kong’s mass residential market.” The into other sectors, such as water and waste
landbank he first started building in the 1950s gave him the treatment, telecom, engineering and clean en-
supply he needed to become a frenzy of activity with Hen-
derson—which built and sold 50,000 units over an 18-year ergy technologies.
period. Today Henderson is the largest owner of undevel- When Lee senior took over the business in
oped rural land in Hong Kong’s New Territories, with roughly 1983, he expanded it from Hong Kong to sup-
46 million square feet. In February, Lee held the No. 1 posi- ply gas to over 130 cities in mainland China.
tion on Hong Kong’s 50 richest list, edging out his longtime The pair now aim to transform Towngas into a
rival Li Ka-shing for the top spot.
“smart energy” provider by adopting new tech-
nologies such as AI. The Lee family has also
been investing in tech-related projects in Chi-
na, Germany, Israel, Japan and the U.S. in re-
cent years.
Peter and Martin say they see more opportuni-
I n that spirit, the brothers are pushing ahead ties than they can pursue together. “We wish we
with projects. A showcase among them is
at the site of a former car park on Murray
had more brothers to cover more markets,” jokes
Road in central Hong Kong. The Lees beat Peter. “We are already working really hard.”
out eight other bidders to pay $3 billion for
the site in 2017, reportedly setting a record at the time for
the world’s most expensive commercial transaction per
square foot. The pair have divided
The reason for the high price was simple—the last ma-
jor transaction in the area is said to have happened 24 their roles by geography,
years ago. Situated between the Bank of China Tower and
Li Ka-shing’s Hutchison House (itself undergoing a report- and have the final say in LEE SHAU KEE: MARTIN SCHOELLER FOR FORBES
ed $4 billion renovation), it is a prime location. “We have a
chance to create something very special that can be an icon
for Hong Kong,” says Martin. “We spent months with the their respective markets.
architect to come up with its stunning and unconvention-
al architecture.”


F ORBES A SIA MAR CH 2020

Martin and Peter Lee
next to two models
of the Murray Road
development, a cutaway
of the lower floors
(left) and the tower (far
left). Its “stunning and
unconventional” design
is meant to resemble
the bud of the bauhinia
flower. The 34-story
building is slated for
completion in 2023.

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include real estate development and hospitality, education,
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global Strategic Partner Associate of the World Economic Forum.
AMTD International (NYSE: HKIB), a subsidiary of AMTD Group and
listed on the New York Stock Exchange, is the No. 1 independent
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and enable knowledge exchange, synergized collaboration, and
value creation. AMTD Foundation has been established to promote
technological development and talent cultivation, serve global
charities and undertake corporate social responsibility.



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Glocalisation — Global Connectors, Local Leaders













































































































“More international than local,

more local than international.” — Calvin Choi

THE LIST MALAYSIA’S 50 RICHEST












40
SLOW MOTION


The richest take a hit amid political uncertainty and virus fears.



BY NAAZNEEN KARMALI



M alaysia’s slowing econ- No. 9 moved into the top five for the first
time; he’s at No. 4 with $5.3 billion.
omy, now getting hit
Kuan
Kam Hon
by the coronavirus
Another gainer is Kuan Kam Hon,
outbreak, took a toll on who controls Hartalega Holdings, the
its tycoons. A weaker world’s largest maker of nitrile gloves.
ringgit and a nearly 10% decline in Five newcomers enter the ranks
the country’s benchmark stock index this year, the richest of whom are a
combined to pull the wealth of the pair of inheritors. Brothers Lee Yeow
country’s 50 richest lower for the sec- Chor and Lee Yeow Seng share a
ond year in a row. Their collective net $4.8 billion legacy left by their fa-
worth is $79 billion, down 7% from ther Lee Shin Cheng, the architect of
a year ago. (The surprise resignation a palm oil and property empire, who
of Prime Minister Mahathir in late died last June. This year’s new faces
February took the index down further include two tech entrepreneurs: Chu
after we had locked in net worths.) Jenn Weng, founder of electronics
Nonagenarian business legend Rob- maker ViTrox; and former Hewlett-
ert Kuok, with a net worth of $11.5 Packard engineer Oh Kuang Eng,
billion, remains at No. 1, a position he whose Mi Technovation makes semi-
has held for over two decades. Kuok is conductor equipment.
among four list members whose wealth Five from last year’s list are miss-
shrank by more than $1 billion in the ing this year, most notably Grab co-
past year. The hardest-hit in dollar founder Anthony Tan. With a lofty
terms was banking tycoon Teh Hong valuation of $14 billion, the ride-
Piow, the founder of Public Bank, who slipped to No. 5 from hailing decacorn Grab has grown from its Malaysian roots
No. 3 last year. to become a regional player headquartered in Singapore.
AirAsia’s Tony Fernandes and Kamarudin Meranun Tan, a Singapore citizen, therefore may be a candidate for
saw more than a third of their respective fortunes vanish. that country’s rich list. Four others didn’t make the cut this
Aside from the coronavirus onset curtailing air travel, an- year, including property developer Leong Kok Wah of Eco
other blow to their fortunes came in early February after a World, who was affected by a glut of new property that de-
UK court ruling implicated AirAsia and unnamed execu- pressed prices.
tives in an Airbus bribery case. AirAsia has denied all allega-
tions of wrongdoing and said it is investigating the matter. Reporting by Megha Bahree, Muhammad Cohen, Sean Ki-
In all, 22 listees saw their net worth decline from a year lachand, Anis Shakirah Mohd Muslimin, Suzanne Nam,
ago, but an equal number were modestly better off. Among Phisanu Phromchanya, Anuradha Raghunathan and Jes-
the latter group was casino mogul Chen Lip Keong, who sica Tan. Editing assistance by Lucinda Schmidt.

COURTESY OF HARTALEGA


METHODOLOGY
The list was compiled using information from the individuals, stock exchanges, analysts, private databases, government agencies and other
sources. Net worth estimates are based on stock prices and exchange rates as of the close of markets on February 14. Private companies
were valued by using financial ratios and other comparisons with similar publicly traded companies.




F ORBES A SIA MAR CH 2020

MALAYSIA’S
has annual revenue of almost $1.8 billion,
Artist rendering 50 RICHEST
of NagaWorld up 19% last year, and a market capitaliza-
Vladivostok tion of HK$48 billion ($6.2 billion).
A former doctor, Chen got a sweet deal in
1994: a 70-year license that includes a gam-
ing monopoly in Phnom Penh and the sur- 1. ROBERT KUOK
rounding 200 kilometers that was recently
extended to 2045, and special tax breaks. $11.5 BILLION
“Dr. Chen was in the right place at the right KUOK GROUP 41
AGE: 96
time,” says Michael Zhu, senior vice presi-
dent at U.S. gaming consultancy The Inno-
Coloring Up vation Group. 2. QUEK LENG CHAN

CHEN LIP KEONG From his first casino on a river barge, $9.7 BILLION MALA Y
Chen built NagaWorld into a major resort, HONG LEONG GROUP
Despite the coronavirus outbreak taking becoming a billionaire. He then invested AGE: 78
a toll on gaming, Chen Lip Keong is trying $369 million to build Naga2. Now he’s
his luck in Russia: his NagaCorp is building building the $3.5 billion Naga3, slated 3. ANANDA KRISHNAN
a $300 million casino hotel outside Vladivo- to open in 2025, with 3,500 rooms plus SIA ’S 50 RICHES
stok, due to open in 2021. “I like the entre- convention and entertainment facilities. $5.9 BILLION
MAXIS
preneurial spirit behind the development,” This latest extension will be linked to the AGE: 81
Chen says. Booming growth at his Cambo- current complex underground, similar to
dian casino complex helped push Chen’s net the NagaCity Walk retail corridor linking T
worth up 6% to $5.3 billion, now at No. 4 NagaWorld and Naga2. “Naga3 may sound 4. CHEN LIP KEONG
on our list. NagaCorp’s share price has near- ambitious and at first blush appears out- $5.3 BILLION
ly doubled since November 2017 when the sized, but this company understands the NAGACORP
Naga2 extension opened in Phnom Penh. dynamics of the market,” says Klebanow AGE: 72
Chen, 72, has used the monopoly license Consulting’s Andrew Klebanow, who is
he won in 1994 to ride Cambodia’s eco- based in Las Vegas. 5. TEH HONG PIOW
nomic reemergence from decades of war Chen says his Russian project represents
$4.85 BILLION
and, more recently, a wave of investment as big an opportunity as he found in Cam-
PUBLIC BANK
and tourism from China into Cambodia. bodia when he launched Naga in 1994. AGE: 89
In 2006, NagaCorp became the first casino “The entry costs should not weaken our
operator—and the first Cambodia-based ability to travel a long journey ahead to see 6. LEE YEOW CHOR
company—to list in Hong Kong; today it success,” says Chen. —Muhammad Cohen
& YEOW SENG

$4.8 BILLION
IOI CORP.,
IOI PROPERTIES
AGES: 53, 41

7. LIM KOK THAY


$3.2 BILLION
GENTING
AGE: 68

8. KOON POH KEONG,

POH MING & POH WENG


$3 BILLION
PRESS METAL
AGES: 58, 63, 65

ADAM DEAN FOR FORBES CHANGE IN WEALTH KEY:







UNCHANGED
UP DOWN


F ORBES A SIA
MAR CH 2020 NEW TO THE LIST RETURNEE

MALAYSIA’S
50 RICHEST
Lack of Interest


TEH HONG PIOW

9. KUAN KAM HON Public Bank’s chairman emeritus, Teh Hong the central bank would cut interest rates.
Piow, saw his fortune buffeted by headwinds It obliged in May, cutting for the first time
$2.8 BILLION
in Malaysia’s banking industry. Public Bank since 2016, then again in late January, bring-
42 HARTALEGA HOLDINGS “is not immune to the subdued sentiments,” ing its benchmark rate to a nine-year low of
AGE: 72
says Teh, 89, in emailed comments. Aside 2.75%. The coronavirus crisis will also likely

T 10. LAU CHO KUN from global uncertainties, slower growth weigh on growth, and therefore earnings.
“Profitability will be affected for all the
and an interest rate cut in Malaysia have
THE LIS $2.3 BILLION “posed further pressure on banks’ earnings,” banks in the short term at the very least,”
he adds.
says AllianceDBS Research analyst Chin
HAP SENG CONSOLIDATED
Teh saw $1.85 billion shaved off his net
AGE: 84
Public Bank’s stock also reflects lackluster
worth since the last list as shares in the Jin Han in Kuala Lumpur. The decline in
11. FRANCIS YEOH country’s second-largest bank by market results over the past year, he says. In No-
& SIBLINGS value declined roughly 30%. Teh, who re- vember, the bank posted a 1.5% decline in
third-quarter earnings.
tired as chairman last year, started the bank
$1.7 BILLION in 1966, which now has 428 billion ringgit Despite the challenges, Teh remains opti-
($103 billion) in assets. In addition to his mistic. The banking sector will continue to
YTL CORP.
AGE: 65
emeritus title, Teh remains a director and be a key driver in financing popular afford-
advisor to the bank. able housing, and to support the govern-
12. JEFFREY CHEAH With the U.S.-China trade war hurt- ment’s development of the small and mid-

ing growth prospects, investors last spring sized business sector, says Teh in the email.
$1.45 BILLION
began selling Malaysian bank shares in a bet —Jessica Tan
SUNWAY
AGE: 74

13. SYED MOKHTAR

ALBUKHARY Teh Hong Piow (center left) at the bank’s 2018 annual general meeting in Kuala Lumpur.

$1.4 BILLION

DRB-HICOM
AGE: 68

14. LIM WEE CHAI


$1.35 BILLION
TOP GLOVE
AGE: 62

15. G. GNANALINGAM


$1 BILLION
WESTPORTS HOLDINGS
AGE: 75

16. SURIN UPATKOON


$980 MILLION
MAGNUM
AGE: 70
17. TIONG HIEW KING
JOSHUA PAUL/BLOOMBERG

$976 MILLION
OREGON GROUP
AGE: 84






F ORBES A SIA MAR CH 2020

18. NGAU BOON KEAT


$975 MILLION
43
DIALOG GROUP
AGE: 71
19. NINIAN MOGAN
LOURDENADIN MALA Y


$970 MILLION
MBF HOLDINGS
AGE: 66

20. DAVID KONG SIA ’S 50 RICHES

$900 MILLION
NIRVANA ASIA
AGE: 65 T

21. LEE OI HIAN
& HAU HIAN
Lee Shin Cheng (center) had appointed his two sons before his death, Lee Yeow Seng (left) and Lee Yeow Chor.

$835 MILLION
BATU KAWAN
Taking the Reins AGES: 69, 66

LEE YEOW CHOR, LEE YEOW SENG
22. LIM KANG HOO

Lee Yeow Chor and Lee Yeow Seng are the family by selling ice cream from a bicycle, $765 MILLION
two sons of the late tycoon Lee Shin Cheng, then returning to finish his schooling four ISKANDAR WATERFRONT HOLDINGS
and heirs to his IOI palm oil and property years later. In 1961, he tried to get a job at AGE: 64
fortune. They debut on the list following plantation firm Dunlop Estates, but was
their father’s death on June 1, two days shy rejected. “I was very disappointed but I de- 23. VINCENT TAN
of his 80th birthday. cided to work harder and not give up,” Lee
$750 MILLION
Their shared $4.8 billion fortune shrunk told a local newspaper in 2017.
BERJAYA CORP.
11% over the past year, due largely to a Instead, he found work at a small rub- AGE: 68
roughly 29% slump in IOI Properties Group ber plantation and rose to become estate
shares, as an oversupply in the Malaysian manager by the age of 30. He started what 24. LIM PENG CHEONG
property market weakened prices, among would become IOI Properties in 1975, ac-
other factors such as the U.S.-China trade quired Industrial Oxygen Incorporated (the & PENG JIN
disputes, Brexit and weak commodities original name of IOI) in 1982, then entered $685 MILLION
prices. Meanwhile, IOI Corp.’s shares fell palm oil. In an ironic twist, he bought Dun- SCIENTEX
less than 2% as concerns the corona-virus lop Estates in 1989. AGES: 57, 52
would hurt demand were offset by dry Lee is survived by his wife Hoong May
weather curtailing supplies. The company Kuan, his six children—including daughters 25. SYED AZMAN SYED
declined to comment. Yoke Ling, Yoke Har, Yoke Hean, and Yoke IBRAHIM
Lee Shin Cheng had appeared on every Hui—as well as 12 grandchildren. Yeow Chor,
Malaysian rich list since 2007. He built IOI 53, is IOI Corp.’s group managing director $675 MILLION
Corp. into a $7 billion (market cap) palm oil and CEO, and sits on IOI Properties’ board. WESTSTAR AVIATION SERVICES
giant with operations in eight countries and Yeow Seng, 41 and a London-trained lawyer, AGE: 59
THE STAR, MALAYSIA cap) company. The two companies are com- Yeo Bee Yin, former environment minister CHANGE IN WEALTH KEY:
IOI Properties into a $1.7 billion (market
is CEO of IOI Properties. He is married to
monly referred to together as the IOI group.
for Malaysia. Their sister Lee Yoke Har is an
executive director at IOI Properties.
Lee Shin Cheng grew up poor on a rubber
UP DOWN
UNCHANGED
plantation, leaving school at 11 to help his
—Anis Shakirah Mohd Muslimin
RETURNEE
NEW TO THE LIST
MAR CH 2020 F ORBES A SIA

MALAYSIA’S
50 RICHEST






26. DANNY TAN CHEE SING


$665 MILLION
44 TROPICANA
AGE: 64


T 27. AHMAYUDDIN BIN AHMAD
THE LIS $620 MILLION


WESTPORTS HOLDINGS
AGE: 63

28. LIM HAN WENG


$610 MILLION
YINSON HOLDINGS
AGE: 67

29. GOH PENG OOI Wealth Creation

$600 MILLION
Ready for Prime Time
SILVERLAKE AXIS
BY YUWA HEDRICK-WONG
AGE: 65
30. CHEAH CHENG HYE Malaysia has long aspired to join the outbreak may also hit HDI and economic
ranks of developed countries. Admission growth—a black swan event that could have
$595 MILLION
to the OECD, often referred to as the “rich a hard-to-anticipate impact.
VALUE PARTNERS
countries’ club,” would be formal recogni- However, the service sector provides a
AGE: 65
tion that Malaysia has done just that. How more comprehensive assessment. The ser-
31. YAW TECK SENG close is Malaysia to the OECD level of de- vice sector, as opposed to agriculture or man-
ufacturing, tends to be the largest and most
velopment? Judging from its economic de-
& CHEE MING velopment, the answer is “close.” In 2019, important in any developed economy. Here
Malaysia’s per-capita GDP was estimated at you find the best-paid, most highly skilled
$480 MILLION
about $12,200, not far behind the $13,530 jobs. Services reflect the quality of a coun-
SAMLING STRATEGIC
AGES: 81, 60 average of the six least wealthy OECD try’s workers. And since the lion’s share of
members, according to World Bank data. the service sector caters to consumers, it also
32. DESMOND LIM Per-capita GDP is a very narrow gauge of measures consumer-sector development. An
SIEW CHOON development, though. Another good mea- innovative, sophisticated service sector with
a strong supply of skilled labor and robust
sure is the human development index, or
$470 MILLION HDI, which takes into account life expec- demand from its customers is a meaningful
PAVILION REAL ESTATE tancy, health, quality of life and education. measure of a country’s development.
In 2019, Malaysia’s HDI put it 61st of 189 So how does Malaysia’s services sector
INVESTMENT TRUST
AGE: 59
countries. Within Asia, only three coun- stack up? Its service sector is currently esti-
tries rank higher: Singapore at 9th, Japan mated at roughly 55% of GDP, much lower
33. PATRICK GROVE at 19th and Korea at 22nd. So Malaysia than the OECD average of about 70%. Ma-

has made good progress. The coronavirus laysia’s GDP still relies heavily on agricul-
$465 MILLION
ture, mining and manufacturing. To get
IFLIX
ready for prime time, Malaysia will need a
AGE: 44
bigger and higher value-added service sec-
34. KONG CHONG SOON TO GET READY FOR PRIME tor to do the heavy lifting.
TIME, MALAYSIA WILL On the supply side, Malaysia boasts one ALEXANDER SPATARI/GETTY IMAGES
NEED A BIGGER AND of the best-educated populations in emerg-
$420 MILLION
HIGHER VALUE-ADDED ing Asia. The percentage of adults with a
UNITED OVERSEAS AUSTRALIA
AGE: 79
SERVICE SECTOR TO DO secondary education increased to 87% in
THE HEAVY LIFTING. 2017 from 63% in 1990, and in tertiary edu-



F ORBES A SIA MAR CH 2020

cation to 41% from 8%, according to World class: private consumption now accounts
Bank data. However, educational quality is for more than half of Malaysian GDP, ac-
more nuanced and uneven. According to cording to central bank data, and has done
the OECD’s latest Program for Internation- for the past decade.
al Student Assessment, Malaysian students Going forward, however, growing middle
of equivalent education levels perform only class and household incomes will depend 35. AZMAN HASHIM
about 85% as well as their OECD peers in on the service sector. Malaysia needs to
reading, 88% in math and 84% in science. make labor productivity and growth in con- $410 MILLION
They score even lower relative to students sumption mutually reinforcing. To boost AMMB HOLDINGS 45
AGE: 80
from urban China and Singapore, which labor productivity, it needs to improve both
rank first and second, respectively. the quality of workers and their market
OECD research found that Malaysia mobility. A more productive labor force will 36. MOHD ABDUL KARIM
also suffers a shortage of university gradu- translate into higher household incomes, BIN ABDULLAH MALA Y
ates with the technical training required which will further stimulate private con-
$405 MILLION
to fill medium- and high-skilled occupa- sumption. More consumption will encour-
SERBA DINAMIK HOLDINGS
tions. And while countries everywhere face age greater investment in services. And AGE: 54
a shortage of highly skilled workers, Ma- stronger investment, especially in entrepre-
laysia’s is especially severe: the OECD es- neurial startups, will make services a more 37. ONG LEONG HUAT SIA ’S 50 RICHES
timates that about a third of the country’s powerful engine of employment growth.
jobs are filled by workers without the req- Unfortunately, Malaysia’s investment is $365 MILLION
uisite skills. This situation seriously hinders missing in action. Investment as a percent- OSK HOLDINGS
AGE: 75 T
productivity growth, making it tougher for age of GDP has drifted lower in recent years,
Malaysia to climb the value chain. to an estimated 23% in 2019 from around
It’s better on the demand side, where pri- 26% in 2017, according to the central 38. ABDUL KADIER SAHIB
vate consumption has withstood slowing bank—the opposite of what Malaysia needs.
$360 MILLION
global trade and rising economic uncer- In late February, the abrupt resignation of SERBA DINAMIK HOLDINGS
tainty. In the first half of 2019, private con- Prime Minister Mahathir increased politi- AGE: 71
sumption grew by 7.7% year on year—not cal uncertainty, which will further dampen
far off 2018’s 8% growth—despite falling in- investor confidence. If this trend continues, 39. LOH KIAN CHONG
vestment and slowing export growth. Con- it could jeopardize Malaysia’s becoming a
sumption’s resilience is testimony to how more developed economy. $355 MILLION
Malaysia’s efforts to industrialize and devel- Reviving investment in services would ORIENTAL HOLDINGS
AGE: 43
op exports have produced a robust middle come with a bonus: accelerating the evolu-
tion of Malaysia’s digital economy. Malay-
sia already has the conditions for its digital 40. WONG THEAN SOON
Malaysia boasts one of the best-educated economy to take off. More
populations in emerging Asia. $340 MILLION
than 80% of Malaysians, for MY E.G. SERVICES
example, already regularly AGE: 48
use the internet. But Malay-
sian companies, according to 41. TONY FERNANDES
the Digital Adoption Index,
lag their regional peers in $335 MILLION
adopting digital technology AIRASIA
AGE: 55
to drive their own develop-
ment. Malaysia’s score in
the Digital Adoption Index 42. WEN CHIU CHI
is 0.55, below Korea’s 0.62, $325 MILLION
Japan’s 0.68 and Singapore’s SELANGOR PROPERTIES
0.81. This is the new frontier AGE: 63
NICOLAS MCCOMBER/GETTY IMAGES Yuwa Hedrick-Wong is Chief Economics Commentator for Forbes Asia. He is also a visiting scholar at CHANGE IN WEALTH KEY:
for Malaysia’s service sector.
Getting there will ready Ma-
laysia for the prime time.




the Lee Kuan Yew School of Public Policy, National University of Singapore. Having worked as an econo-
mist across the Asia-Pacific, Europe, the Middle East and Africa in the past 25 years, he regularly writes
columns about the global economy for Forbes Asia. Views expressed are his own. He can be reached at
[email protected].
RETURNEE
NEW TO THE LIST

F ORBES A SIA
MAR CH 2020 UP DOWN UNCHANGED

MALAYSIA’S
50 RICHEST
Big Dig

LIM KANG HOO


43. KAMARUDIN MERANUN One of the main developers behind
Iskandar Malaysia in Johor Bahru,
$315 MILLION Lim Kang Hoo is now hoping this
46 AIRASIA year to launch Bandar Malaysia, the
AGE: 58
$33 billion, off-again, now on-again
project in Kuala Lumpur, revival of
T 44. WONG TEEK SON which helped boost Lim’s fortune
THE LIS $310 MILLION 8% to $765 million.

His privately held Iskandar Wa-
RIVERSTONE HOLDINGS
The project was launched in 2011 by the
terfront Holdings will develop 197 hectares
AGE: 57
on a former air force base as part of a ven- fraud-ridden government fund 1Malaysia
45. MOKHZANI MAHATHIR ture with China Railway Engineering and Development Bhd. (1MDB), only to be can-
Malaysia’s finance ministry. When it’s done celled in 2017, and then revived in 2018.
$305 MILLION
in roughly 20 years, the mixed-use develop- This news boosted shares of Lim’s Iskandar
SAPURA ENERGY
ment will have office buildings, a shopping Waterfront City and Ekovest, which gained
AGE: 59
mall, housing, public green spaces and a almost 70% and 31%, respectively, in the
46. GOOI SEONG LIM transport hub. past year. —Suzanne Nam

$290 MILLION
KIM LOONG RESOURCES
AGE: 70

47. CHU JENN WENG


$280 MILLION
ViTROX
AGE: 50

48. KONG PAK LIM


$275 MILLION
UNITED OVERSEAS AUSTRALIA
AGE: 65

49. YONG PANG CHAUN

Bumpy
$265 MILLION
Road
PADINI HOLDINGS
AGE: 69
VINCENT TAN
50. OH KUANG ENG Vincent Tan’s flagship Berjaya Corp. has ize. CEO Wong Heang Tuck was quoted in

$255 MILLION not escaped the Malaysian stock market’s November saying that the IPO remains in
overall decline. Berjaya’s stock fell about the works for this year.
MI TECHNOVATION
AGE: 50
14% in the past 12 months, while Tan’s for- An oversupply of unsold residential and
tune is down 2.6% to $750 million. commercial units across Malaysia also
Tan also had to stall the listing of U Mo- weighed on Berjaya Corp., causing a loss
bile, one of the country’s largest cellular of 54 million ringgit ($13 million) on rev- CHARLES PERTWEE/BLOOMBERG; NICKY LOH/BLOOMBERG
companies—an IPO that would have re- enue of 2 billion ringgit for the quarter
portedly raised up to $500 million. Tan, ended in September 2019. Berjaya warned
FOR MORE INFO, GO TO who chairs its board, announced plans to shareholders in November that it faces a
FORBES.COM/MALAYSIA list the firm in 2018. Yet despite a bum- challenging environment amid economic
per 2019 for Malaysian IPOs—with 30 uncertainty at home and abroad. Tan’s of-
CHANGE IN WEALTH KEY:
new listings, the highest in more than a fice and Berjaya officials did not respond to
UP DOWN UNCHANGED
NEW TO THE LIST RETURNEE decade—U Mobile’s IPO didn’t material- requests for comment. —Joe Cochrane


F ORBES A SIA MAR CH 2020

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AND BUILT IT INTO A REGIONAL
LEASING POWERHOUSE.




































BY PAMELA AMBLER PHOTOGRAPHS BY LISZT CHANG FOR FORBES ASIA


F ORBES A SIA MAR CH 2020