Forbes: 10 of Hong Kong's richest individuals

Hong Kong tycoon Li Ka-shing has once again become the city's richest man thanks to the increase in the shares of his property developer CK Asset Holdings, while Henderson Land's Lee Shau-kee and New World Development's Henry Cheng and his family ranked second and third.

According to the 2022 Forbes’ list of Hong Kong’s 50 richest, Li Ka-shing retained his top spot with US$36 billion. Resilience in Hong Kong’s residential market lifted shares of his property developer CK Asset Holdings by a third from a year ago, offsetting the decline in his holding in video conference provider Zoom. Real estate tycoon Lee Shau-kee, whose Henderson Land scooped up a prime commercial plot in the city for a record US $6.5 billion, saw his fortune increased by 12% to US$34.2 billion and remained at number two.

Holding on to the third spot since 2020 was Henry Cheng. His net worth, which he shares with his family, was up by US$4.3 billion to US$26.4 billion, as shares of his Chow Tai Fook Jewellery Group jumped 40% thanks to increased sales.

The Lee siblings (4th, US$18.9 billion), who inherited the oyster sauce empire of their late father Lee Man Tat, joined the ranks for the first time. Here's the full top 10 list:

1) Li Ka-shing; US$36 billion
2) Lee Shau-kee; US$34.2 billion
3) Henry Cheng and family; US$26.4 billion
4) Lee siblings; US$18.9 billion
5) Peter Woo;US$18.7 billion
6) Joseph Lau; US$13.7 billion
7) Kwong Siu-hing; US$13.2 billion
8) Lui Che Woo; US$12.8 billion
9) Joseph Tsai; US$9.1 billion
10) Yeung Kin-man & Lam Wai-ying; US$8.9 billion

This year’s biggest percentage gainers benefited handsomely from backing startups. For example, real estate matriarch Chan Tan Ching-fen (25th) more than doubled her wealth to US$3.9 billion, thanks to her investment in video-sharing platform Kuaishou Technology, which went public last year raising US$5.3 billion. Shipping tycoon Harindarpal Banga (34th, US$2.85 billion) saw his net worth increase by 97% from US$1.45 billion, following the November IPO of India’s online beauty retailer Nykaa, where he was an early investor.

Yeung Kin-man and Lam Wai-ying, the couple behind smartphone glass cover maker Biel Crystal, slipped six places to the 10th and their combined wealth more than halved to US$8.9 billion, as smartphone sales flatlined, leaving manufacturers with excess inventory.

Amid travel restrictions, casino moguls Lui Che Woo 8th, US$12.8 billion), Pansy Ho (28th, US$3.4 billion), Angela Leong (33rd, US$2.9 billion) and Lawrence Ho (46th, US$1.25 billion) saw their fortunes drop. The sole returnee, after a two-year hiatus, was Kenneth Lo, founder of clothing manufacturer Crystal International, who was at 50th with US$955 million.

Forbes said the list was compiled using information from individuals, analysts, government agencies, stock exchanges, databases and other sources. Net worth is based on stock prices and exchange rates as of the close of markets on 4 February. Private companies were valued by using financial ratios and other comparisons with similar companies that are publicly traded.