CLAIMS TO FAME
- Inherited father Cheng Yu-tung’s 10% of SJM Holdings parent STDM
- Strategic partner of Australia’s Star Entertainment Group with a 4.99% stake
- Acquired Baha Mar, largest resort in the Caribbean, from Chinese state creditors
The mogul in charge of Hong Kong’s New World Group and its Chow Tai Fook jewellery and gaming subsidiary made a positive move in casino investment mid-year when he took over management of the Hoiana resort in Vietnam.
It was the first major move for Henry Cheng’s gaming people after some years of caution. Chow Tai Fook’s existing investments include its long-standing 10% stake in SJM Holdings parent STDM, 5% of Star Entertainment Group, and a 25% share of the soon-to-open Queen’s Wharf Brisbane integrated resort, as well as management of the Baha Mar IR in the Bahamas.
The move on Hoiana, replacing benighted Suncity management, was the bright spot in an otherwise turbulent year for this list of interests. SJM should be doing better, Star Entertainment is straight-jacketed by licence suspensions and the close scrutiny of two Australian state governments, the Baha Mar project remains subject to legal challenge by its ousted billionaire founder, and even Star’s Queen’s Wharf project – due to open next year – has been sullied by a court case over unpaid contractor fees.
Yet all of this isn’t Cheng’s biggest headache. New World Development, Hong Kong’s leading property company, is feeling pressure over its exposure to China’s flattening economy, and the price of its nearly US$5 billion in perpetual bonds is down heavily, stoking company debt. Cheng and his team could do with more luck right about now.
For the full list of 2023 Asian Gaming Power 50 winners, click here.
