Former reporter takes control of fugitive husband's $11.7 billion fortune
When entertainment reporter Chan Hoi-wan first met her
future husband, billionaire mogul Joseph Lau, she reached out to a mole on his
head and asked if it was real.
So begins the story of one of Hong Kong's most peculiar
family sagas, as reported by Chan's former employer, the Apple Daily run by
media tycoon Jimmy Lai. It culminated this week with Chan, Lau's second wife,
gaining more influence over her fugitive husband's real estate empire, which is
altogether worth about $US8 billion ($11.7 billion), according to the Bloomberg
Billionaires Index.
Filings with the Hong Kong stock exchange showed that Lau Ming-wai,
Lau's son from his first wife, transferred 25 per cent of Chinese Estates to an
entity of Chan's children, putting her in charge of a 75 per cent stake. The
transfer, worth about $US300 million, is the latest in a reshuffling of Lau's
empire that began in 2017, when he gave shares to his son and Chan. It
effectively consolidates Chan's control over one of Asia's largest fortunes.
"The more shareholding concentration will reduce the
possibility of disputes concerning future direction, which would be positive
for Chinese Estates' development and also for the shareholders," said
Kenny Ng, a securities strategist at Everbright Sun Hung Kai. "It's
expected that Chan Hoi-wan will be more actively involved in the company."
The transfer is happening at a tricky time for Hong Kong,
where the real estate sector faces a downturn from ongoing anti-government
protests and the COVID-19 pandemic. Despite a 41 per cent jump this month,
Chinese Estates shares are down 20 per cent for 2020.
Entertainment coverage
Before marrying Lau in 2016, Chan was a reporter at Apple
Daily for several years, where she covered entertainment and made connections
with various celebrities around the city. She joined the Chinese Estates group
as an associate in 2002, working in its cosmetic business, according to a
company filing. Her elder sister, Chan Sze-wan, was appointed chief executive
officer of the company in 2015 after joining in 2002. Chan Lok-wan, her younger
sister, is an executive director.
Lau, who was convicted of bribery and money laundering in
Macau in 2014, came into the political spotlight last year, when his lawyers
applied for a judicial review against the government's plans to permit
extraditions, including to mainland China and Macau. His legal challenge opened
a split between the Hong Kong government and the business community, which
deepened as other business leaders came out against the bill. Lau later
withdrew the application, and the government ended up scrapping the law in the
face of growing protests.
Prison sentence
He was sentenced in absentia to five years and three months
in prison for his conviction but, with no extradition pact between Hong Kong
and Macau, hasn't served jail time -he just hasn't returned to the gambling
hub. This week's share transfer to Chan may be a way to protect the stake, said
Everbright Sun Hung Kai's Ng.
"Lau's family is still optimistic about the prospect of
Hong Kong and Chinese Estates so the members of the family increased their
shareholding," the company said in an email. "Chinese Estates'
general operation and policy will remain unchanged. Please do not make any
conjectures."
Lau, one of Hong Kong's richest moguls whose early fortune
came from making ceiling fans with his brother Thomas, has been known for some
of his high-profile relationships with women. His first marriage to Theresa Po
Wing-kam ended in the early 1990s. They had a daughter, Jade, and Lau Ming-wai,
who is the chairman of Chinese Estates and deputy chairman of Ocean Park, the
debt-laden amusement park that is seeking a government rescue plan.
Dramatic breakup
Before marrying Chan, he had a dramatic breakup with his
girlfriend Yvonne Lui Lai-kwan that resulted in Lau's printing of a full-page
statement in several newspapers to debunk "untrue reports in the
media," in which he said he had given her gifts worth more than $HK2
billion over the years, making her a "very wealthy woman." Lau had
two children with Lui.
Nowadays, the 68-year-old mogul keeps a low profile. This
year, as most of Hong Kong's richest tycoons declared support for Beijing's
controversial national security law, he has not come out publicly on the issue.
One of the few places where he appears is on the Instagram
feed of his wife. Chan, who goes by Kimbee on the platform, posts shots to her
182,000 followers with celebrity friends and business elites. As recently as
last year, she showed photos of Lau hobnobbing with fellow billionaires,
including Jack Ma, China's richest man, and Thomas Kwok, a member of Hong
Kong's wealthiest family. She also posts frequently about penguins.
'Not greedy'
Chan, whose age was given as 40 in a December filing,
started accruing assets in 2017, when Lau gave her a retail complex at
commercial building The One in Tsim Sha Tsui that he bought for $HK7.8 billion
($1.5 billion). The same year, he transferred most of his stake in Chinese
Estates to her. He told Apple Daily that Chan "is not greedy. She is pure,
and she is not a bad woman. She has been taking good care of me and my
children."
Lau, who has also owned a Boeing 747 jet and has properties
in Hong Kong and London, is known for his investments in art, wine and
jewellery, and children with Chan have been the recipients of his largesse. He
bought them precious stones and named one of them "The Blue Moon of
Josephine", after their daughter Josephine. It has the highest possible
colour grade of fancy vivid blue, and its pre-sale price was estimated at 34.2
million francs to 53 million francs ($52.3 million-$81.5 million), according to
Sotheby's website.
Despite the health concerns he cited for his transfer of
shares to Chan in 2017, they had a third child in 2018.
Chinese Estates' annual report shows that Chan holds her
shares as trustee for her minor children, which means they will be among the
heirs to one of the world's greatest and most bewildering fortunes. But while they're
still kids, their mother will protect them. On Instagram, Chan sometimes covers
their faces with penguin emojis.
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