Stanley Ho
Gambling magnate
STANLEY HO, who has died at 98, was a billionaire who was considered the father of modern gambling in China.
Known as the “King of Gambling”, he secured for himself a four-decade monopoly on the casinos of Macau, and then used his home advantage to build an empire that continued to dominate the industry even after it was opened up to foreign competition in 2002.
He was the richest tycoon in the former Portuguese colony, a lavish spender and accomplished ballroom dancer who wielded great influence both there and in neighbouring Hong Kong while – according to US authorities – maintaining ties to organised crime.
Tall, handsome and of mixed Chinese and European heritage, Mr Ho fathered 17 children with four women, and his extended family erupted in several highprofile squabbles over his empire during his later years.
Even though casinos made his fortune, Mr Ho avoided the gaming floor.
“I don’t gamble at all. I don’t have the patience,” he said in a rare interview in 2001. “Don’t expect to make money in gambling. It’s a house game. It’s for the house.”
He also had stakes in businesses that ran the ferries and helicopters connecting Hong Kong to Macau, as well as in department stores, hotels, Macau’s airport and its horseracing tracks.
In 2009, he underwent brain surgery after reportedly falling at home and hitting his head. His weakened condition may have set the stage for a very public family feud that erupted in 2011 over control of a casino operator.
He disputed a supposed transfer of his entire multibillion-dollar stake to five of his children and one of his wives, calling it a “robbery” that went against his desire to divide the fortune equally among various branches of his family.
He is survived by three of his wives and 16 children. One of his daughters, Josie, is an actress and singer who had a role in the 2011 Steven Soderbergh film, Contagion.