Ong Beng Seng to step down as managing director of Hotel Properties Limited
The company cited health as the reason.
Businessman Ong Beng Seng is seen ahead of the Singapore Grand Prix on Sep 14, 2023. (File photo: REUTERS/Edgar Su)
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SINGAPORE: Property tycoon Ong Beng Seng is set to step down as managing director of Hotel Properties Limited (HPL) at the conclusion of the company's annual general meeting on Apr 29.
In an exchange filing on Monday (Apr 14), HPL said that this would allow Ong to "devote more time to manage his medical conditions".
He will also not be putting himself up for re-election as a board director.
In a statement sent to CNA later on Monday, a spokesperson for HPL said that its executive directors, Mr Christopher Lim and Mr Stephen Lau, would continue to manage the company in their roles, reflecting the company's "ongoing commitment to strong leadership and operational excellence".
"Mr Ong Beng Seng continues to be the controlling shareholder of HPL, providing strategic oversight and direction," the spokesperson added.
Ong's health condition came to light amid an ongoing court case linked to former transport minister S Iswaran.
It was reported in February that Ong, who is often credited with bringing F1 to Singapore, had been diagnosed with bone marrow cancer.
The 79-year-old was charged with two offences in October 2024.
He is accused of abetting the former minister in obtaining an all-expenses paid trip to Doha worth about S$20,850 (US$15,830) in December 2022.
The second charge alleges that Ong abetted the obstruction of justice by intentionally aiding Iswaran in May 2023, when the Corrupt Practices Investigation Bureau had begun its probe, by paying S$5,700 to Singapore GP for a business class flight ticket from Doha to Singapore over the same trip.
Following a pre-trial conference in February, his decision to plead guilty was reflected in an update on the court’s case management system.
Iswaran was sentenced last October to 12 months' jail for obtaining valuables worth more than S$400,000 and obstructing justice.
ONG BENG SENG'S BUSINESS EMPIRE
Ong was born in Sabah, Malaysia, to a wealthy family and moved to Singapore in 1950, according to the New Straits Times.
In the early 1970s, he earned his first fortune selling shipping insurance. In 1975, he joined Kuo International, an oil trading firm started by his father-in-law, Peter Fu Yun Siak.
He formed HPL in 1981 to lead Kuo International's acquisition of hotels and other properties. A year later, the company was listed in Singapore.
HPL owns and operates hotels under the brands of Four Seasons, COMO Hotels & Resorts, InterContinental Hotels Group, Six Senses, Marriott International, Hard Rock Hotels and Concorde, as well as malls including Forum shopping mall.
The businesses span worldwide, with operations in 17 countries such as Singapore, Malaysia, Thailand, Maldives, Indonesia, Seychelles, the United Kingdom and the United States.
His Singaporean wife Christina Ong runs Como Hotels & Resorts, retail empire Club 21 and London-listed handbag maker Mulberry.
The couple was ranked 27th richest in Singapore in 2024 and estimated by Forbes to have a net worth of US$1.7 billion (S$2.2 billion).
In May 2022, HPL, in partnership with units of Singapore's state-owned investment firm Temasek, bought the real estate assets of Singapore Press Holdings for US$2.8 billion.
