Tan Sri Robert Kuok, the largest gainer in dollar terms this year, is Malaysia's richest person, according to the 2023 Forbes list of Malaysia's 50 Richest.
Kuok has held the top spot for more than a quarter-century and is one of just two people on the list with a fortune in excess of US$11.8 billion.
Tan Sri Quek Leng Chan, executive chairman of the Malaysian part of the privately held Hong Leong Group, ranks second on the list with US$10.2 billion.
Despite a drop in the stock market, the combined wealth of the tycoons on the 2023 Forbes list of Malaysia's 50 richest increased to $81.6 billion from $80.5 billion last year.
Metals magnate Koon Poh Keong and his siblings remain in third place. Their combined wealth of US$5.8 billion is down nearly seven per cent from US$6.2 billion last year, in line with the fall in shares of their company, Press Metal Aluminium Holdings, Southeast Asia's largest integrated aluminium producer, amid higher raw material and freight costs.
Taking the fourth spot is Ananda Krishnan of Maxis, whose net worth rose from US$400 million to US$5.4 billion.
Among the big gainers on this year's list are father-and-son duo Yaw Teck Seng and Chee Ming, who control timber giant Samling. They jumped to No. 16 from No. 32 last year as their wealth more than doubled to US$1.25 billion, on new information about their private assets.
Former math teacher Chia Song Kun was at No. 10 with a net worth of US$1.8 billion. The executive chairman of his family's seafood firm, QL Resources, returns to the ranks after a seven-year gap on a nearly 20 per cent rise in the company's shares and the inclusion of his broader family's stakes.
Two private equity-backed tycoons got a boost from landmark deals. Tan Sri Syed Azman Syed Ibrahim (No. 24), whose Weststar Aviation Services operates the second-largest offshore helicopter fleet in Asia-Pacific, bought back investment firm KKR's 21 per cent stake and is now worth US$825 million, up 27 per cent from last year.
The wealth of funeral services provider Nirvana Asia's founder, David Kong (No. 23, US$860 million), rose on the proposed sale by PE firm CVC Capital Partners of its stake at an estimated valuation of US$2 billion.
The five new faces this year include property magnates Chiau Beng Teik (No. 29, US$665 million), founder of the Chin Hin Group, and Yu Kuan Chon (No. 39, US$430 million), a medical doctor, who runs his family's YNH Property.
The other newcomers are Ong Soon Ho (No. 32, US$630 million), founder of agrochemicals group Hextar, and Goh Nan Kioh (No. 40, US$425 million), who owns investment firm Mega First and has a stake in D&O Green Technologies, which makes LEDs for the automotive sector.
The fortune of veteran banker Tan Sri Teh Hong Piow, founder of Public Bank, who died in December, is now listed under his children, the Teh siblings (No. 5, US$5.2 billion).
The minimum net worth to make the list was US$315 million, up from US$255 million in 2022.
The top 10 richest in Malaysia are:
1) Tan Sri Robert Kuok; US$11.8 billion
2) Tan Sri Quek Leng Chan; US$10.2 billion
3) Koon Poh Keong & siblings; US$5.8 billion
4) Ananda Krishnan; US$5.4 billion
5) Teh siblings; US$5.2 billion
6) Lee Yeow Chor & Yeow Seng; US$4.6 billion
7) Dr. Chen Lip Keong; US$2.8 billion
8) Tan Sri Lim Kok Thay; US$2.3 billion
9) Tan Yu Yeh & Yu Wei; US$1.9 billion
10) Chia Song Kun; US$1.8 billion
