Contrary to Hollywood’s portrayal of heirs and heiresses, our Singapore scions who are set to inherit their parent’s billionaire empires aren’t freeloaders.
Instead, they’ve made their mark on society as accomplished individuals. They may lead a privileged life, but they work hard and contribute to Singapore in their own ways as well.
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We’ve compiled a list of 10 heirs who are likely to follow in their parents’ footsteps and become the next billionaires. Check out the gallery to see who’s on the list:
If his name rings a bell, you probably remember him from the third season of Singapore Idol. Like his media-shy grandfather, Kuok is relatively low profile, but made headlines when he pulled out of the competition in 2009 due to “personal reasons”. Nonetheless, the Stanford University graduate has not stopped chasing his dreams and has even released his first EDM single “Into The Wild” last year.
The 24-year-old is probably one of the most well-connected heiresses, rubbing shoulders with celebrities lke football superstar David Beckham to K-Pop singer Lee Seung Ri. The jet-setter is no stranger to luxury goods, owning expensive bags from brands like Yves Saint Laurent, Givenchy, Chanel, Hermes and an extensive collection of Christian Louboutin heels. Despite living a modern-day fairytale, Lim is also involved in charity work. The former SIM University business management student said her end goal would be to help her father out in his business and be able to support him one day.
After graduating from University of Pennsylvania’s Wharton School with a Bachelor of Science in Economics, Tanoto spent two years as a consultant at Bain & Company SE Asia, headquartered in Singapore. At Bain, he worked with clients from Malaysia, Indonesia and Thailand and acquired expertise within Southeast Asia. Despite his commitments, he is an active member of the Board of Trustees of Tanoto Foundation, which promotes scholarships for economically disadvantaged students in Indonesia. He now spends most of his time in Indonesia taking care of his father’s business, receiving recognition for his approach to growing the business efficiently.
Oei works for the family business at Oei Hong Leong Foundation. The low profile heiress is known for her sartorial elegance and occasionally gets featured on Singapore Tatler. In case you were wondering, she’s taken. In January 2014, she married Matthew Song, HSBC’s Head of Equity Capital Markets for Southeast Asia, and documented their wedding journey here.
Kwek (second from left) is Independent Director of Sahara Energy Ltd and one of the company’s largest shareholders after he was bought into the company via a private placement in 2012. He has been a private investor in the equity and debt markets for more than 10 years and has worked for some government-related organisations, NGOs and for-profit corporations. The Raffles Junior College graduate holds a Bachelor of Science in Finance from the Wharton School of Business at Penn, a Bachelor of Arts from the Liberal Arts College at Penn, and a Master of Science from Columbia University.
The Babson College graduate was immediately conscripted into his family business after graduation and now serves as Vice President of Development Asia – Capella Hotel Group Asia at Capella Hotel Group. This only seems like a natural progression, given Kwee’s passion for design. The 38-year-old is also a cycling enthusiast and would paddle to work, claiming that it allows him to clear his mind.
The 38-year-old has been serving as Executive Director of Sino Hotels since 2005. In addition to Sino Group, he is also an independent Non-Executive Director at the Bank of East Asia, Blue Cross (Asia-Pacific) Insurance Limited, Hong Kong Design Centre and BEA Life Limited. He was born in Hong Kong and spent his childhood there, but now holds Singaporean citizenship and has served National Service. Ng has a Bachelor of Arts Degree and a Master Degree of Science in Real Estate Development from Columbia University in New York.
The Ngee Ann Polytechnic graduate in building and real estate construction might only have started in the business six years ago, but his property magnate father is already handing over the reins of Royal Group Holdings to his 30-year-old son. In an interview with Forbes, his father explained that he’d rather give his son the business while he’s alive. He added that the younger Hiranandani has a vision for the company, which was proven by the first project he managed himself – Sofitel So, a five-star hotel located near Raffles Place.
Choo is the Director and shareholder of Hotel 81, which was founded by her father. She helps her father in running his business, which has 24 locations island wide under Hotel 81 Management Group and V Hotel Management. Choo graduated from NTU’s Nanyang Business School in 1999 with First Class Honours.
The co-founder of Lo and Behold, a group of trendy establishments, Wee first ventured into the F&B industry when he was 25. He had graduated from the University of Pennsylvania with a degree in management, psychology and finance, and started Loof in Odeon Towers in 2005. Now, he has several restaurants and bars, including The Black Swan, Overeasy, Tanjong Beach Club, The White Rabbit and two Extra Virgin Pizza restaurants under his wing. Wee married artist Dawn Ng in 2014.