Lee Shau-Kee’s sons get control of US$10 billion Henderson stake
The company has a market value on the Hong Kong exchange of almost HK$109 billion
[HONG KONG] The two sons of the late Hong Kong billionaire Lee Shau-Kee now control their father’s US$10 billion stake in property firm Henderson Land Development, according to new filings.
Peter Lee Ka-Kit, 61, and Martin Lee Ka-Shing, 53, who have been co-chairmen of the company since 2019, appear as equal controllers of the shares through three different vehicles, according to filings to the Hong Kong stock exchange. The documents do not specify whether they are the sole beneficiaries of the trust that holds their father’s stake.
A spokesperson for Henderson Land did not provide further details on the ultimate beneficiaries. Lee’s eldest daughter Margaret, a senior general manager at the company, and his two other daughters were not mentioned in the filings this week.
Lee Shau-Kee, whose business empire included real estate, utilities and public infrastructure, died on Mar 17 at the age of 97. He founded Henderson Land in 1973 and built it into one of Hong Kong’s largest developers on the back of the city’s decades-long real estate boom. The company has a market value on the Hong Kong exchange of almost HK$109 billion (S$19 billion).
His fortune stood around US$23 billion at the time of his death, making him the third-wealthiest person in Hong Kong, according to the Bloomberg Billionaires Index.
Known for his bullish bets on the stock market in the two years before the 2008 global financial crisis, Lee was dubbed “Asia’s Warren Buffett” by local media. He said at the time he had doubled the size of his private investment fund to as much as HK$200 billion within about a year.
“While Dr Lee had always been the ‘stabilising’ force in this co-leadership structure, his sad departure is going to stress test the system,” said Jeremy Cheng, adjunct assistant professor at the Chinese University of Hong Kong. “This happens against the backdrop of a property slide, demanding a unified voice within the family to respond to all the uncertainties.” BLOOMBERG
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