| | SEPTEMBER 202419Tatparanandam Ananda KrishnanAnanda Krishnan, the second wealthiest individual in Malaysia, has built a diverse business empire encompassing telecommunications, gaming, real estate, oil, and pay TV.Hailing from Kuala Lumpur, Ananda Krishnan, a graduate of Harvard, initially amassed his wealth as an oil trader and served as a founding director of the state oil giant Petronas. He gained control of multiple Malaysian companies through his holding firm, Usaha Tegas, and despite maintaining a low profile, he is known for his adeptness in timing the stock markets.Ananda Krishnan, with his controlling interest, opted to take Malaysia's leading telecommunications company, Maxis, private in 2007, just before the onset of the global financial crisis. He subsequently relisted it in 2009 through a $3.3 billion initial public offering (IPO). In July 2011, he conducted the listing of offshore oil firm Bumi Armada, raising $890 million right before market volatility led to the cancellation of numerous IPOs in Asia. Ananda's most recent market maneuver was the relisting of pay-TV company Astro All Asia Networks in October, raising $1.5 billion after he had taken it private in 2010.Ananda is known for being protective of his privacy, seldom appearing in public and reportedly spending the majority of his time in the south of France with his wife and young daughter. His two children from a previous marriage are not part of the business empire, as his daughter is reportedly working as a doctor in Britain, and his son has become a Buddhist monk.Li Ka-ShingThe wealthiest self-made business tycoon on the list and the richest man in Asia is Li Ka-shing. Considered one of the most powerful business figures in Asia, Li, 84, has earned the nickname "Superman" due to his reputation for savvy business deals. He left mainland China to go to Hong Kong with his family in 1928, quitting school at the age of 12 to work in a plastics factory after his father contracted tuberculosis. By age 19, he became the general manager of the factory after starting as a salesman. Li founded his own plastic manufacturing business in 1950 at age 22, now known as Cheung Kong Industries, one of Hong Kong's top real estate investment firms.Li's business is now so diversified that it includes shipping, telecommunications, and biotechnology, with employees in 52 countries. His two sons, Victor Li, 48, and Richard Li, 45, manage his various businesses. Victor oversees Cheung Kong, Hutchison Whampoa, and KC Life Sciences and is set to inherit Asia's largest family fortune, while Richard serves as the Chairman of PCCW, a telecommunications company.Charoen SirivadhanabhakdiCharoen, hailing from a family of 11 and the son of a street vendor who moved from southern China to Bangkok, began working at the age of nine after dropping out of school. In the 1970s, he established a small trading enterprise focusing on selling inexpensive local beer and whiskey. Over the following fifteen years, he expanded his portfolio to include ownership of sugar mills, banks, and insurance companies.An important milestone in his beverage business occurred in 1995 when he formed a partnership with Danish brewer Carlsberg to manufacture Chang Beer. This venture led to the establishment of Beer Thai, which later became part of Thai Bev, a company listed in Singapore. Additionally, the magnate has made significant investments in real estate, with his privately held company TCC Land owning shopping centers and hotels spanning from Singapore to New York.
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