31. DATUK TAN HENG CHEW

Flagship: Tan Chong Motor Holdings Bhd Net worth: RM2.306bil IT’S been a mixed bag for the Tan family of the Tan Chong group, synonymous with the distributorship of the Nissan marque in South-East Asia and China. Heng Chew, the eldest of the seven sons of Tan Sri Tan Yuet Foh, a co-founder of the group, is the president of the group’s crown jewel, Tan Chong Motor Holdings (TCM).

Heng Chew and family hold a direct 7.6% stake in TCM and an indirect 39.3% stake through Tan Chong Consolidated Sdn Bhd (TCC), the family holding company. TCM’s share price slid 19.88% last year before recovering since the beginning of the year.

Besides his stake in TCM, Heng Chew and family also have controlling stakes in APM Automotive Holdings Bhd, a manufacturer of auto parts; Warisan TC Holdings Bhd, a tour operator as well as distributor of Shiseido and Wacoal products; and Hong Konglisted Tan Chong International Ltd, a distributor of Nissan, Subaru and Mitsubishi vehicles.

Unlike TCM, APM’s share price finished last year with a 7.36% gain while Warisan TC and Tan Chong International both saw their share prices rising by 17.46% and 8.56%, respectively. TCM’s share price performance largely reflected the flat sales of passenger vehicles last year, which contracted for the second year.

Despite slipping in the rankings of Malaysia’s richest, the family was in 23rd spot in 2016, the Tan family’s net worth barely budged. Seldom in the limelight, Heng Chew and two of his brothers, Eng Soon and Eng Hwa, control the family holding company, TCC. Heng Chew’s wife, Datuk Khor Swee Wah, is the group chief executive officer of TCM.

The youngest of Heng Chew’s three sons, Anthony, is better known compared to his father, being one-half of the ride-hailing service Grab, which after the latest round of funding in the middle of last year, is now worth US$10bil, much more than the market value of all the listed companies in which TCC has stakes in.