Wealth of Singapore’s 50 richest diverges as OCBC, Sheng Siong boom offsets tech slide
Forbes Asia’s list shows that the aggregate net worth of the city-state’s most affluent is flat at US$239 billion
Add BT as a preferred source
[SINGAPORE] The ranks of Singapore’s 50 richest individuals have shifted from a year ago, though their aggregate net worth has stayed flat as a strong year for OCBC and Sheng Siong offset a nearly US$16 billion combined decline in the fortunes of Facebook co-founder Eduardo Saverin and Sea’s founders.
Published on Thursday (Sep 3), Forbes Asia’s list of Singapore’s 50 richest placed their combined wealth at US$239 billion.
The biggest year-on-year gainer was the Lee family of OCBC , whose net worth jumped 78 per cent to US$13.8 billion to land them in fourth place.
The bank’s shares have nearly doubled over the past year as the lender leveraged Singapore’s status as a regional safe haven, driving a boom in its wealth-management business.
Domestic consumption proved equally lucrative. Lim Hock Chee, CEO of Sheng Siong , was 24th on the list as his family’s wealth increased to US$2.7 billion.
Shares of the supermarket operator were up 54 per cent as it expanded its brick-and-mortar footprint across heartland residential estates.
Real estate stalwarts also provided baseline stability. City Developments Ltd’s ( CDL ) Kwek Leng Beng and his family were in second place after adding US$1.8 billion, bringing their net worth US$16.1 billion.
This was aided by strategic asset divestments and a tighter focus on the residential and hospitality markets.
Robert and Philip Ng of Far East Organization, meanwhile, maintained their third-place spot with US$14.3 billion.
Saverin, co-founder and co-CEO of venture capital firm B Capital, remained in first place with a US$32.9 billion fortune.
Despite retaining his title as Singapore’s richest individual, Saverin’s net worth is down US$10.1 billion over the past year.
Shares of Meta, which owns Facebook, have dropped 25 per cent as a 14 per cent decline in second-quarter net profit, driven by heavy spending on artificial intelligence infrastructure, rattled investors.
Concurrently, New York-listed e-commerce and gaming giant Sea faced intense competitive pressure from TikTok Shop, squeezing margins in its Shopee division.
Its shares tumbled by about a third, erasing nearly US$5.9 billion from the collective fortunes of co-founders Forrest Li (seventh), Gang Ye (14th) and David Chen (44th).
Singapore’s economy expanded 6.1 per cent in the first half of 2026, reflecting manufacturing growth in electronics and precision engineering, driven by surging AI-related demand.
Thirty-five of the 50 entries in the list were wealthier than they were a year ago, despite a decline in tech-related fortunes.
Newcomers, returnees
Quek Leng Chye (48th), a Singapore-based brother of Malaysian billionaire Quek Leng Chan, was the sole newcomer, with a US$1.2 billion fortune.
A cousin of CDL’s Kwek, Quek is managing director of Hong Leong Holdings, the property development and investment arm of Hong Leong Group.
Returning to the top 50 were husband-and-wife-duo Gordon and Celine Tang (49th) with a US$1.1 billion fortune.
They rejoined the list after a two-year absence as units of one of their key holdings, Suntec Real Estate Investment Trust , rose 20 per cent.
The three Wong brothers, Charles, Keith and Kelvin, who own and run privately held Charles & Keith, also returned, coming in at 50th place after a one-year absence with US$1 billion in wealth.
Decoding Asia newsletter: your guide to navigating Asia in a new global order. Sign up here to get Decoding Asia newsletter. Delivered to your inbox. Free.
Copyright SPH Media. All rights reserved.
