Stories by JAGDEV SINGH SIDHU, GURMEET KAUR, B.K. SIDHU, HANIM ADNAN, YVONNE TAN, TEE LIN SAY, DALJIT DHESI and EUGENE MAHALINGAM

1. ROBERT KUOK Flagship: Kuok Group/Kerry Group Net worth: RM43.59bil

ROBERT Kuok is once again Malaysia’s richest man with a net worth of RM43.59bil, despite a fall in his wealth by RM6.32bil from the previous year.

The 95-year-old, who is touted as one of Malaysia’s most successful entrepreneurs who have grown their operations in China, controls businesses across Malaysia, Singapore and Hong Kong. His family members and relatives run the most important of the Kuok businesses.

Kuok has controlling stakes in three listed companies in Malaysia – PPB Group Bhd, Malaysian Bulk Carriers Bhd (Maybulk) and Shangri-La Hotels (M) Bhd. PPB is a diversified company that is in plantations, food and also cinemas through Golden Screen Cinemas Sdn Bhd (GSC). Maybulk is a shipping line and Shangri-La Hotels is the No 1 hotel chain in the country. Across the causeway, he controls Wilmar International Ltd, which is the world’s largest palm oil-based edible oil trader that had a market cap of S$19.97bil as at year-end. In Hong Kong, Kuok’s wealth is primarily held via Kerry Group through a web of shareholding structures. Kerry Group has stakes in Shangri-La Asia, Kerry Properties and Kerry Logistics on the Hong Kong exchange. From the 1980s, Kerry Properties has developed large-scale properties mainly in China and has total assets of HK$167.9bil currently.

While the businesses in Malaysia are a big part of his wealth, the bulk comes from Hong Kong and Singapore.

As opposed to Singapore where the Wilmar stock closed flat, Shangri-La Asia and Kerry Properties on the Hong Kong bourse shed one-third and one-fifth in market values last year.

In terms of corporate activities, Maybulk completed its offer for sale of its entire 21.23% stake in Singapore-listed PACC Offshore Services Holdings Ltd (POSH) to its own shareholders in September last year. The deal raised RM251mil in cash to pay for new vessels and cut down debts. Before that in June, PPB, which owns GSC said it will spend RM300mil to expand and upgrade its cinema chain in the country. GSC has a 40% market share in Malaysia and the expansion will see it having a total of 348 screens in 36 locations.

Over at Singapore, Wilmar bought a 50% equity interest in Nauvu Investments Pte Ltd from Olam International Ltd for US$148mil. Subsequently Nauvu, which has interest in integrated palm oil, rubber and sugar assets in Africa, is a unit of Wilmar.

Wilmar also has a controlling 58.3% stake in Mumbai-based Shree Renuka Sugars Ltd after triggering a general offer early last year.

The company is India’s largest sugar manufacturer.

It appears that Kuok has plans to spin off some subsidiaries for public listing if recent media reports are anything to go by.

One is by Wilmar, which is said to be in the process of spinning off its Chinese subsidiary to list on the Shanghai Stock Exchange.

The other is Kuok’s Kerry Logistics, which reportedly is considering an initial public offering (IPO) of its Thai business that “could take place as soon as the first half of this year”. The Bangkok IPO could raise US$200mil to US$300mil, a report quoting sources said.