15. TAN SRI JEFFREY CHEAH Flagship: Sunway Bhd Net worth: RM4.77bil

THE wealth of Sunway Group’s founder and executive chairman dropped by RM740mil or 13.4% putting him lower at 15th spot on the list in 2018 from 13th in

2017.

Cheah is one of the few tycoons in the property and construction sector, who has managed to scrape through the ongoing bearish sentiment, especially post-general election 2018, despite many construction projects having to defer or cancelled.

Sunway Group is one of Malaysia’s largest conglomerates with core interests in property, construction, education and healthcare. The group has three public-listed companies, namely Sunway Bhd, Sunway Construction Bhd (SunCon) and Sunway REIT with a combined market capitalisation of about RM17bil.

Moving forward, Sunway Group is expected to take on more property development projects in the Klang Valley and Singapore.

The group is still very active in acquiring large tracts of land bank with the recent focus shifting to Singapore as Malaysia’s property market is facing a slowdown.

In Malaysia, the group acquired 37.4 acres at RM586.7mil in 2017 with a gross development value of RM5.5bil, while in Singapore, the group is focusing on its property projects in Tampines, Sembawang and Brookvale Park.

Sunway’s largest integrated township development, Iskandar Johor Baru, struggled to take off successfully due to lack of buyers’ interest and the condominium glut in Johor.

Sunway is also dipping into its REITs kitty by selling some of its key assets to Sunway REITs to raise funds after its recent aggressive land acquisitions.

The debt position of Sunway Bhd (excluding Sunway REITs) has risen by RM0.62bil or 19% to RM3.95bil as at September 2018 from RM3.33bil in December 2016. Its net gearing is at 0.4 times, which is still deemed manageable.

In Singapore, the group is going big time into the property development market, bidding for major tenders and acquisitions of prime residential land together with its joint-venture partner Ho Hup Realty Pte Ltd.

Its unit SunCon has also achieved its new contract target of RM1.5bil in 2018 and expects to secure another RM1.5bil this year.

While the construction sector outlook remains challenging, SunCon’s remaining order book of RM5.2bil provides good earnings visibility.