Lim, 31, has been tight-lipped about his family in the show and in press interviews.

But he has said his family controls a billion-dollar company, though he clarified in a Yahoo interview recently that his father is not a billionaire. They are in real estate as well as the oil and gas industry.

He himself runs an investment fund in Los Angeles with a portfolio that includes real estate deals.

Little else is known, though he has mentioned that his grandparents left communist China for Singapore.

The reality show star, who has more than 200,000 followers on Instagram, regularly models his luxury, branded pieces on his account.

And one of his dedicated followers is none other than pop star Rihanna.

Lim tells The Straits Times that one of his favourite pieces of outerwear is a sparkly Balmain jacket. Rihanna had told him on social media to wear that to one of her concerts.

Lim has an extensive designer footwear collection of more than 300 pairs and is a self-professed shopaholic.

In a 2018 interview with The New Paper, Lim says the character who most resonates with him from the hit film Crazy Rich Asians (2018) is fashionista Astrid Leong.

Lim said: “I have walked into a designer shoe store and said, ‘I’ll take one pair of everything you have in every colour, I’ll take it all.'”

Lim’s Buddhist faith is well-documented on the show. He is seen meditating and chanting in one of his first scenes on the series.

He tells ST he turned to Buddhism three years ago.

“It really taught me to be compassionate to myself. I’ve been vegetarian for the last three years and I’ve stopped smoking.”

Lim’s fashion sense has come in handy when he does charity work.

In 2015, he sold pre-loved and new items – worth more than $20,000 in retail value – at discounted prices at the Singapore Red Cross International Bazaar. They included a rare Hermes crocodile bracelet and a new Celine bag.

Bling Empire is available on Netflix.

Text: Jan Lee/The Straits Times

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