Samuel Tak Lee
Samuel Tak Lee | |
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![]() Lee in 2015 | |
Born | April 1939 (age 85) |
Nationality | Hong Konger |
Education | Diocesan Boys' School, Hong Kong |
Alma mater | Massachusetts Institute of Technology Harvard Business School |
Occupation | Property developer |
Children | 7 |
Samuel Tak Lee or Lee Tak-Yee (Chinese: 李德義; pinyin: Lǐ Déyì; Jyutping: Lei5 Dak1-ji6; born April 1939) is a Hong Kong property billionaire.
Early life
[edit]Lee was born in April 1939.[1] He was educated at Diocesan Boys' School in Mong Kok,[2] before earning bachelor's and master's degrees in civil and environmental engineering from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology in 1964.[3] Lee then earned an MBA from Harvard Business School.[4]
Career
[edit]After finishing his studies, Lee returned to Hong Kong to join Prudential Enterprise, the real estate company founded by his father and uncle in 1958.[5][6] He took control of the entire business from his brother Lee Tak-Yan in 1985.[7] Prudential Enterprises owns the Prudential Hotel[8] in Hong Kong and has significant holdings in Hong Kong, Japan, Switzerland and Singapore.[9][10] In the UK, he purchased the 14 acre Langham Estate in London's Fitzrovia district in 1994.[11][12] A real estate portfolio Lee indirectly established in Tokyo in 1999 was eventually sold in 2017 for approximately $1.2 billion.[13][14][15][16][17]
By 2019 Lee had become the largest shareholder in Shaftesbury plc a large London real estate investment trust with a 26.3 per cent stake.[18][19][20] There was persistent media speculation that Lee would eventually bid for control of Shaftesbury.[21][22][23] The Times also reported that Lee was suing Shaftesbury for £10.4 million in alleged losses over a share placing.[20] His interest in Shaftesbury was subsequently sold at a discount to Capco for $544 million in June 2020.[24][25][26]
Lee has been noted for his vigorous defence of his estate's legal rights and business interests.[7][11][27] According to Forbes, he had a net worth of $3.6 billion, as of January 2021.[28]
Philanthropy
[edit]In 2007, Lee donated HK$9 million to Hong Kong's Diocesan Boys' School, of which he was a student between 1951 and 1958.[6] The donation was made to fund residential student growth with a new dormitory block for the school. One of Lee's sons was studying at the school at that time.[29][30]
Lee donated $118 million in 2015 to the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, to be used to establish a real estate entrepreneurship lab focused on China.[31] The lab has been researching the impact of poor urban air quality on residents' health, social lives and behaviour.[32][33]
Personal life
[edit]Lee is married with seven children and lives between Hong Kong and London.[4] He reportedly owns the yachts Pelorus and Kogo.[34][35][36] The Lee family reported owns a Boeing aircraft and a large car collection.[37][22]
Lee maintains a low profile and rarely speaks out about his many business dealings.[37] According to media reports and court documents Lee has a colourful personal life.[38][27][39][40]
Samuel's son, Samathur Li Kin-kan, is famous for his divorce settlement, which the court of Hong Kong awarded his ex-wife HK$1.2 billion.[41][42]
Gallery
[edit]-
Opening Ceremony of the Samuel Tak Lee Building at Diocesan Boys' School
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Samuel Tak Lee Building at Diocesan Boys' School
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Lee's Langham Estate Offices on Margaret Street, London
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Samuel Tak Lee yacht Pelorus
References
[edit]- ^ "Langham Estate Management Limited". Companies House. Archived from the original on 7 February 2019. Retrieved 10 August 2015.
- ^ DBS Movie Gallery, Speech Delivery by Mr Samuel Tak Lee 2008-2009, archived from the original on 22 March 2022, retrieved 5 February 2019
- ^ Olsen, Robert. "Real Estate Billionaire Donates $118 Million To MIT". Forbes. Archived from the original on 10 January 2015. Retrieved 5 February 2019.
- ^ a b "Samuel Tak Lee". Forbes.com. Archived from the original on 3 March 2014. Retrieved 11 May 2017.
- ^ "PRUDENTIAL ENTERPRISE, LIMITED - THE - 恒豐企業有限公司". 30 April 1958. Archived from the original on 7 February 2019. Retrieved 5 February 2019.
- ^ a b "Real Estate Billionaire Donates $118 Million to MIT". Forbes. 10 January 2015. Archived from the original on 10 January 2015. Retrieved 28 April 2015.
- ^ a b "Lee plays for keeps". EG: Estates Gazette. No. 414. April 2004. p. 44.
- ^ Bruce Lee's (Hong Kong-American actor, director, martial artist) home was torn down in the late 70’s early 80’s to make way for the current building – The Prudential Centre – completed in 1982. (31 July 2014). "The Bruce Lee Guide to Yau Ma Tei". Hong Kong (& Macau) Stuff. Archived from the original on 12 February 2019. Retrieved 11 February 2019.
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: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link) CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link) - ^ Luigino Canal (2007) "Un mystérieux Chinois rachète le coeur de Genève" Édition Bilan, 09 mai 2007, p.16
- ^ "MIT Receives $118M Gift From Alumnus". www.wbur.org. Archived from the original on 7 February 2019. Retrieved 5 February 2019.
- ^ a b Chiu, Austin (21 October 2013). "Property tycoon Samuel Tak Lee challenges HK$1.4b awarded to son's ex-wife Florence Tsang Chiu-wing". The South China Morning Post. Archived from the original on 15 September 2017. Retrieved 14 September 2017.
- ^ Moore, Malcolm (2 December 2011). "Asian property tycoon heir to pay £95 million to ex-wife". The Daily Telegraph. Archived from the original on 15 September 2017. Retrieved 14 September 2017.
- ^ "Norges in $823M Japan JV with Tokyu Land". Mingtiandi. 10 December 2017. Archived from the original on 20 April 2019. Retrieved 20 April 2019.
- ^ David. "Property news round up 17 Dec 2017 | PropertyInvestSG". Archived from the original on 20 April 2019. Retrieved 20 April 2019.
- ^ "Property tycoon Samuel Tak Lee challenges HK$1.4b awarded to son's ex-wife Florence Tsang Chiu-wing". South China Morning Post. 21 October 2013. Archived from the original on 20 April 2019. Retrieved 20 April 2019.
- ^ "Veloqx group real estate". papode.ml. Retrieved 20 April 2019.
- ^ "Veloqx real estate". ringmares.ml. Retrieved 20 April 2019.
- ^ Marlow, Ben (15 July 2015). "Is Sammy Tak Lee hoping to get lucky with Shaftesbury offer?". Daily Telegraph. ISSN 0307-1235. Archived from the original on 7 February 2019. Retrieved 24 April 2019.
- ^ Shah, Oliver (20 May 2018). "Hong Kong tycoon Samuel Tak Lee's war on Chinatown owner". The Sunday Times. ISSN 0956-1382. Archived from the original on 24 April 2019. Retrieved 24 April 2019.
- ^ a b Clarence-Smith, Louisa (12 June 2019). "Property tycoon sues West End landowner". The Times. ISSN 0140-0460. Archived from the original on 12 June 2019. Retrieved 12 June 2019.
- ^ UK, Will Martin, Business Insider. "The battle for a £3 billion property empire in London's Chinatown just took a new turn". Business Insider. Archived from the original on 24 April 2019. Retrieved 24 April 2019.
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has generic name (help)CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link) - ^ a b "Time for 'Man of Mystery' Shaftesbury shareholder to put up or shut up". Evening Standard. 29 January 2019. Archived from the original on 24 April 2019. Retrieved 24 April 2019.
- ^ "Samuel Tak Lee locks horns with Shaftesbury again". QuotedData. 2 May 2019. Archived from the original on 1 June 2019. Retrieved 1 June 2019.
- ^ "Samuel Tak Lee Sells Stake in Shaftesbury for £436M". Mingtiandi. 2 June 2020. Archived from the original on 11 June 2020. Retrieved 2 June 2020.
- ^ "Samuel Tak Lee Sells Stake in Shaftesbury for £436M". Mingtiandi. 2 June 2020. Archived from the original on 11 June 2020. Retrieved 11 June 2020.
- ^ "UK's Capco buys 26% stake in rival Shaftesbury for $540 mln". Reuters. 1 June 2020. Archived from the original on 21 March 2022. Retrieved 21 March 2022.
- ^ a b "Favor Easy Management Ltd, Samuel Tak Lee v Fuk Fei Wu, Favor Easy Management Ltd (2012)". www.maitlandchambers.com. Archived from the original on 7 February 2019. Retrieved 5 February 2019.
- ^ "Forbes profile: Samuel Tak Lee". Forbes. Archived from the original on 3 March 2014. Retrieved 25 January 2021.
- ^ "Donation of HK$70m among city's largest". South China Morning Post. 12 February 2019. Archived from the original on 12 February 2019. Retrieved 11 February 2019.
- ^ "DBS64 50th Anniversary Magazine". Issuu. Archived from the original on 21 October 2016. Retrieved 11 February 2019.
- ^ "Hong Kong tycoon Samuel Tak Lee donates US$118m to MIT for real estate studies". South China Morning Post. 9 January 2015. Archived from the original on 16 May 2015. Retrieved 28 April 2015.
- ^ Massachusetts Institute of Technology (21 January 2019). "In China, a link between happiness and air quality: Moods expressed on social media tend to decline when air pollution gets worse, study finds". ScienceDaily. Archived from the original on 12 February 2019. Retrieved 11 February 2019.
- ^ "The city is her lab -- Siqi Zheng studies the economics of China's urban explosion". MIT News. Archived from the original on 15 February 2019. Retrieved 11 February 2019.
- ^ Hanson, Dana (12 March 2022). "The 10 Most Expensive Sailboats in the World". Money Inc. Archived from the original on 14 March 2022. Retrieved 21 March 2022.
- ^ "Pelorus sold to Chinese billionaire". Yacht Harbour. Archived from the original on 29 January 2019. Retrieved 29 January 2019.
- ^ Klein, Michael (16 July 2021). "Crew of Cayman-registered superyacht sues for unpaid wages". Cayman Compass. Archived from the original on 30 September 2021. Retrieved 21 March 2022.
- ^ a b Marlow, Ben (15 July 2015). "Is Sammy Tak Lee hoping to get lucky with Shaftesbury offer?". Daily Telegraph. ISSN 0307-1235. Archived from the original on 7 February 2019. Retrieved 5 February 2019.
- ^ "Tycoon who accused ex-lover of blackmail". Evening Standard. 26 September 2011. Archived from the original on 30 January 2019. Retrieved 29 January 2019.
- ^ "Court slashes record divorce payout for property scion's ex-wife". South China Morning Post. 10 January 2014. Archived from the original on 23 July 2017. Retrieved 29 January 2019.
- ^ Andrew Hough (30 July 2011). "Court forces property tycoon to give houses to mistress". www.telegraph.co.uk. Archived from the original on 29 January 2019. Retrieved 29 January 2019.
- ^ "The billionaire divorce case that gripped the city". South China Morning Post. Hong Kong. n.d. Archived from the original on 5 October 2013. Retrieved 27 March 2021.
- ^ "Who do you sue when a robot loses your fortune?". The Sydney Morning Herald. 10 May 2019. Archived from the original on 21 March 2022. Retrieved 21 March 2022.
External links
[edit]Media related to Samuel Tak Lee at Wikimedia Commons