In the span of his career, Li became and remained Hong Kong’s richest man for two decades, according to Forbes. For many years, he was also Asia’s wealthiest. His current net worth is estimated to be $35.3 billion.
The self-made billionaire’s ability to build empires out of ordinary businesses earned him the nickname “superman” in Hong Kong. He’s also been referred to as Asia’s answer to Warren Buffett, and credited for having a hand in transforming Hong Kong into the buzzing financial and business hub it is today.
Recent years saw Li backing new and rising start-ups in the region. He was an early investor in Razer, a video game hardware maker, who went on to launch an initial public offering that was one of the most sought after in Hong Kong.
Much like Buffett, Li remained a modest man and dressed plainly despite his wealth and success. An anecdote often used to depict Buffett’s frugality is his retro Samsung flip phone, which he hasn’t given up for a smartphone. For Li, a similar tale — for a long time — involved his wristwatch.
Li wore a simple $50 Seiko watch for decades. He only in recent years switched to a $500 solar-powered Citizen Eco-Drive watch for its convenience, battery life. “I don’t need to be careful,” unlike when wearing timepieces costing hundreds of thousands, he told Bloomberg in an interview in 2016.
Also like Buffett, Li is an active philanthropist. The Li Ka Shing Foundation, established in 1980, has given grants and scholarships to causes including education, health care and humanitarian.
The billionaire has pledged to give one-third of his wealth to charitable causes — but not all of it.
“In Asia, our traditional values encourage and even demand that wealth and means pass through lineage as an imperative duty,” Li said in 2006.
After a career of more than seven decades, Li, who turns 90 in July, is passing the baton to his eldest son — closing a chapter in one of Hong Kong’s most successful and largest conglomerates.
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