Sir Gordon Wu Ying-sheung,Gordon WU Ying-Sheung biography
- website of the

Hong Kong General Chamber of Commerce The Hong Kong General Chamber of Commerce (HKGCC; ) was founded on 29 May 1861, and is the oldest and one of the largest business organizations in Hong Kong. It has around 4,000 corporate members, who combined employ around one-third of Hong Kon ...

GBS, KCMG, FICE (; born 1935,

Hong Kong Hong Kong ( (US) or (UK); , ), officially the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region of the People's Republic of China (abbr. Hong Kong SAR or HKSAR), is a List of cities in China, city and Special administrative regions of China, special ...

) is a Hong Kong businessman. He is the chairman of the board of Hong Kong-listed Asian infrastructure firm Hopewell Holdings Ltd.

Background

Wu studied engineering at the

University of Manitoba The University of Manitoba (U of M, UManitoba, or UM) is a Canadian public research university in the province of Manitoba.Princeton University Princeton University is a private research university in Princeton, New Jersey. Founded in 1746 in Elizabeth as the College of New Jersey, Princeton is the fourth-oldest institution of higher education in the United States and one of the ...

. Wu graduated from Princeton with a

Bachelor of Science A Bachelor of Science (BS, BSc, SB, or ScB; from the Latin ') is a bachelor's degree awarded for programs that generally last three to five years. The first university to admit a student to the degree of Bachelor of Science was the University o ...

degree in engineering (BSc.Eng.) in 1958, and currently serves as a trustee for the university. Before that, he attended Wah Yan College, a Jesuit secondary school in Hong Kong. As one of the founders of Hopewell, he was the managing director from 1972 to 2002. In January 2002, he retired as the managing director of the company but remains as chairman of the board. He was responsible for Hopewell's infrastructure projects in

mainland China "Mainland China" is a geopolitical term defined as the territory governed by the China, People's Republic of China (including islands like Hainan or Chongming Island, Chongming), excluding dependent territories of the PRC, and other territorie ...

and

Southeast Asia Southeast Asia, also spelled South East Asia and South-East Asia, and also known as Southeastern Asia, South-eastern Asia or SEA, is the geographical south-eastern region of Asia, consisting of the regions that are situated south of mainland ...

and has been involved in the design and construction of many buildings and development projects in Hong Kong and mainland China. He is also the chairman of Hopewell Highway Infrastructure Limited, subsidiary of Hopewell listed in August 2003, and an independent

non-executive director A non-executive director (abbreviated to non-exec, NED or NXD), independent director or external director is a member of the board of directors of a corporation, such as a company, cooperative or non-government organization, but not a member of th ...

of i-Cable Communications Limited. In 1984, Wu donated US$5 million worth of his company shares to

Princeton University Princeton University is a private research university in Princeton, New Jersey. Founded in 1746 in Elizabeth as the College of New Jersey, Princeton is the fourth-oldest institution of higher education in the United States and one of the ...

and formed a charity fund. Wu also pledged US$100 million to the university, a sum he planned to make available for university use in 2008, on the occasion of his 50th reunion. In a talk given in October 2006, however, Wu revealed intentions of making the contribution available to the university sooner. He completed this pledge, with the last payment in 2006–2007. He is Chairman of the Council of the

Hong Kong Polytechnic University The Hong Kong Polytechnic University (PolyU) is a public research university located in Hung Hom, Hong Kong near Hung Hom station. The University is one of the eight government-funded degree-granting tertiary institutions in Hong Kong. Founded ...

Business

Wu has been an advocate for more than two decades for the construction of Asia's largest bridge project linking Hong Kong,

Macau Macau or Macao (; ; ; ), officially the Macao Special Administrative Region of the People's Republic of China (MSAR), is a city and special administrative region of China in the western Pearl River Delta by the South China Sea. With a pop ...

, and China's

Zhuhai Zhuhai (, ; Yale: ''Jyūhói''), also known as Chuhai is a prefecture-level city located on the west bank of Pearl River estuary on the central coast of southern Guangdong province, People's Republic of China, on the southeastern edge of P ...

city. The

Hong Kong-Zhuhai-Macau Bridge Hong may refer to: Places *Høng, a town in Denmark *Hong Kong, a city and a special administrative region in China *Hong, Nigeria *Hong River in China and Vietnam *Lake Hong in China Surnames *Hong (Chinese name) *Hong (Korean name) Organiz ...

project was given support by the

PRC China, officially the People's Republic of China (PRC), is a country in East Asia. It is the world's most populous country, with a population exceeding 1.4 billion, slightly ahead of India. China spans the equivalent of five time zones and ...

government in August 2003. The bridge will traverse two-man-made islands, allowing it to go through an undersea tunnel and let shipping pass. The concept is based on the existing Chesapeake Bay Bridge-Tunnel in

Virginia Virginia, officially the Commonwealth of Virginia, is a state in the Mid-Atlantic and Southeastern regions of the United States, between the Atlantic Coast and the Appalachian Mountains. The geography and climate of the Commonwealth are ...

, United States. Since the 1980s, Wu has steered Hopewell Holdings towards developing his vision of creating an advanced transport system for China's manufacturing powerhouse in the

Pearl River Delta The Pearl River Delta Metropolitan Region (PRD; ; pt, Delta do Rio das Pérolas (DRP)) is the low-lying area surrounding the Pearl River estuary, where the Pearl River flows into the South China Sea. Referred to as the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Ma ...

, which includes much of

Guangdong Guangdong (, ), alternatively romanized as Canton or Kwangtung, is a coastal province in South China on the north shore of the South China Sea. The capital of the province is Guangzhou. With a population of 126.01 million (as of 2020 ...

Province and makes use of its proximity to Hong Kong to access professional services and logistics. Wu has predicted that commercial development in Hong Kong will focus upon the growth of four major pillar industries including retailing, tourism, and logistics. He predicts a diminishing role for the property and textiles industries. Gordon Wu designed the first build-operate-transfer (BOT) project for the China Hotel in 1979, thus "leading the way" into China. Wu and Hopewell went on to build power plants (Shajiao B and C) and other infrastructure projects in China, using the BOT structure.

Political stance

Gordon Wu has spoken out in opposition to the development of democracy in Hong Kong. He joined more than 80 of Hong Kong's richest business tycoons and their heirs apparent headed for

Beijing } Beijing ( ; ; ), Chinese postal romanization, alternatively romanized as Peking ( ), is the Capital city, capital of the China, People's Republic of China. It is the center of power and development of the country. Beijing is the world's Li ...

on 26 September 2003 on an annual pilgrimage. The same year, he told the

Chinese University of Hong Kong The Chinese University of Hong Kong (CUHK) is a public research university in Ma Liu Shui, Hong Kong, formally established in 1963 by a charter granted by the Legislative Council of Hong Kong. It is the territory's second-oldest university and ...

executive MBA programme that he opposed direct elections in Hong Kong which, he believed, would cause many problems. Noting that only 10 per cent of Hong Kong citizens pay taxes, with the remaining 90 per cent receiving subsidies in various forms, e.g., public housing, healthcare, and education, if direct elections were introduced, this group would, with the help of the politicians they had voted in, "get not only free lunches, but free dinners and breakfasts." In the run up to the December 2005 protest for democracy in Hong Kong, he said that demonstrators are mobs, and democracy is mobocracy. At a meeting attended by then Vice President Xi Jinping in 2010, he stated, "A small number of people ... are against everything the SAR government wants to do and against everything that's from the central government. They are also using such slogans as 'uprising' and 'liberation'. These show they have hidden purposes."

Hopewell Holdings

Affiliations

; Hong Kong * Chairman of the Council of

* Member of Commission on Strategic Development of the Hong Kong SAR * Member of Hong Kong Logistic Development Council * Advisor of

Urban Renewal Authority The Urban Renewal Authority (URA) is a quasi-governmental, profit-making statutory body in Hong Kong responsible for accelerating urban redevelopment. History The authority's predecessor, the Land Development Corporation (土地發展� ...

* Member of

Hong Kong Trade Development Council The Hong Kong Trade Development Council (HKTDC) is a statutory body established in 1966 as the international marketing dedicated to creating opportunities for Hong Kong's businesses. The organisation has 50 offices around the world, includi ...

* Vice President of Hong Kong Real Estate Developer's Association ; Mainland China * Member of

Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference The Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference (CPPCC, zh, 中国人民政治协商会议), also known as the People's PCC (, ) or simply the PCC (), is a political advisory body in the People's Republic of China and a central part of ...

* Advisor of

Xiamen Special Economic Zone Xiamen Special Economic Zone (), established in October 1980, is one of the five special economic zones in the People's Republic of China. Originally comprising a territory of 2.5 km2 in Xiamen City, it was expanded to 131 km2 in 1984, cov ...

Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region Guangxi (; ; alternately romanized as Kwanghsi; ; za, Gvangjsih, italics=yes), officially the Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region (GZAR), is an autonomous region of the People's Republic of China, located in South China and bordering Vietnam ( ...

and

Qinhuangdao Qinhuangdao (; ) is a port city on the coast of China in northern Hebei. It is administratively a prefecture-level city, about east of Beijing, on the Bohai Sea, the innermost gulf of the Yellow Sea. Its population during the 2020 national ...

; International * Member of Business Advisory Council to the International Finance Corporation of the

World Bank Group The World Bank Group (WBG) is a family of five international organizations that make leveraged loans to developing countries. It is the largest and best-known development bank in the world and an observer at the United Nations Development Gr ...

* Member of

APEC The Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC ) is an inter-governmental forum for 21 member economies in the Pacific Rim that promotes free trade throughout the Asia-Pacific region.

Business Advisory Council (ABAC) * Member of International Advisory Board of the Institute for International Business Communication, Japan

Honours and awards

Wu received several honours and awards:

Honours

* Knight of the Order of the Crown (Belgium, 1985) * Knight Commander of the

Order of St. Michael and St. George The Most Distinguished Order of Saint Michael and Saint George is a British order of chivalry founded on 28 April 1818 by George IV, Prince of Wales, while he was acting as prince regent for his father, King George III. It is named in honour ...

(KCMG) (United Kingdom, 1997) *

Gold Bauhinia Star The Gold Bauhinia Star (, GBS) is the highest Bauhinia Star rank in the honours system of Hong Kong, created in 1997 to replace the British honours system of the Order of the British Empire after the transfer of sovereignty to People's Republic of ...

(GBS) (

, 2004)

Honorary degrees

Doctor of Engineering The Doctor of Engineering, or Engineering Doctorate, (abbreviated DEng, EngD, or Dr-Ing) is a degree awarded on the basis of advanced study and a practical project in the engineering and applied science for solving problems in the industry. In th ...

(D.Eng.) from the Hong Kong Polytechnic University (

, 1994) *

Doctor of Business Administration The Doctor of Business Administration (DBA) is either a professional doctorate or a research doctorate, depending on the granting university, awarded on the basis of advanced study, examinations, project work, and research in business administrat ...

(DBA) from the

University of Strathclyde The University of Strathclyde ( gd, Oilthigh Shrath Chluaidh) is a public research university located in Glasgow, Scotland. Founded in 1796 as the Andersonian Institute, it is Glasgow's second-oldest university, having received its royal chart ...

(United Kingdom, 1994) *

Doctor honoris causa An honorary degree is an academic degree for which a university (or other degree-awarding institution) has waived all of the usual requirements. It is also known by the Latin phrases ''honoris causa'' ("for the sake of the honour") or ''ad ho ...

(dr.h.c.) from the

University of Edinburgh The University of Edinburgh ( sco, University o Edinburgh, gd, Oilthigh Dhùn Èideann; abbreviated as ''Edin.'' in post-nominals) is a public research university based in Edinburgh, Scotland. Granted a royal charter by King James VI in 1 ...

(United Kingdom, 1994) *

(dr.h.c.) from the

University of Manitoba The University of Manitoba (U of M, UManitoba, or UM) is a Canadian public research university in the province of Manitoba.New Orleans New Orleans ( , ,New Orleans

, United States *

Guangzhou Guangzhou (, ; ; or ; ), also known as Canton () and Chinese postal romanization, alternatively romanized as Kwongchow or Kwangchow, is the Capital city, capital and largest city of Guangdong Provinces of China, province in South China, sou ...

, PRC *

Shunde Shunde District, also known as Shuntak, is a district of the city of Foshan, Guangdong province, located in the Pearl River Delta. It had a population of 2,464,784 as of the 2010 census. Once a traditional agricultural county, it has become one ...

, PRC *

Nanhai District Nanhai District (), is a district of Foshan, Guangdong, China. Its government is the first to have developed e-government informatization at the county level in China. History Establishment of Nanhai is traditionally attributed two brothers c ...

, PRC *

Shenzhen Shenzhen (; ; ; ), also historically known as Sham Chun, is a major sub-provincial city and one of the special economic zones of China. The city is located on the east bank of the Pearl River estuary on the central coast of southern provi ...

, PRC * Huadu, PRC * Province of

Quezon Quezon, officially the Province of Quezon ( tl, Lalawigan ng Quezon), is a province in the Philippines located in the Calabarzon region on Luzon. Kalilayan was the first known name of the province. It was later renamed Tayabas. In honor of the ...

, the

Republic of the Philippines The Philippines (; fil, Pilipinas, links=no), officially the Republic of the Philippines ( fil, Republika ng Pilipinas, links=no), * bik, Republika kan Filipinas * ceb, Republika sa Pilipinas * cbk, República de Filipinas * hil, Republ ...

Other awards

*Business Man of the Year by

South China Morning Post The ''South China Morning Post'' (''SCMP''), with its Sunday edition, the ''Sunday Morning Post'', is a Hong Kong-based English-language newspaper owned by Alibaba Group. Founded in 1903 by Tse Tsan-tai and Alfred Cunningham, it has remained ...

and

DHL DHL is an American founded, German logistics company providing courier, package delivery and express mail service, which is a division of the German logistics firm Deutsche Post. The company group delivers over 1.8 billion parcels per year. ...

(1991) *Asia Corporate Leader by Asia Finance Magazine (1991) *Among "the Best Entrepreneurs" by

Business Week ''Bloomberg Businessweek'', previously known as ''BusinessWeek'', is an American weekly business magazine published fifty times a year. Since 2009, the magazine is owned by New York City-based Bloomberg L.P. The magazine debuted in New York City ...

(1994) *Man of the Year by the International Road Federation(United States, 1994) *Industry All-Star by Independent Energy (United States, 1996) *International CEO of the Year by the

George Washington University , mottoeng = "God is Our Trust" , established = , type = Private federally chartered research university , academic_affiliations = , endowment = $2.8 billion (2022) , presi ...

(United States, 1996) *Leader of the Year in the Business/Finance category by the

Sing Tao Daily The ''Sing Tao Daily'' () (also known as ''Sing Tao Jih Pao'') is Hong Kong's oldest and second-largest Chinese language newspaper. It is owned by Sing Tao News Corporation, of which Kwok Ying-shing () is chairman. Its English language sister p ...

and The Standard (2003)

Trivia

* The world's most expensive

truffle A truffle is the fruiting body of a subterranean ascomycete fungus, predominantly one of the many species of the genus ''Tuber''. In addition to ''Tuber'', many other genera of fungi are classified as truffles including '' Geopora'', '' Pe ...

, a 1.51 kilogram rare White Alba truffle, was sold for €125,000 (Hong Kong Dollar $1,250,000; US$160,000) on 13 November 2006 to Gordon Wu, who planned a charity dinner party at Toscana Restaurant at the Ritz Carlton in Hong Kong. This price beats the previous world record of €95,000 for a 1.21 kilogram White Alba truffle in 2005. * The dining hall of

's Butler residential college, built in 1983, is named for Wu. In 1995, Wu pledged a gift of US$100 million to Princeton, US$40 million of that earmarked for graduate fellowships. *The Science and Mathematics Center at

The Taft School The Taft School is a private, coeducational school located in Watertown, Connecticut, United States. It teaches students in 9th through 12th grades and post-graduates. About three-quarters of Taft's roughly 600 students live on the school's ...

Watertown, Connecticut Watertown is a town in Litchfield County, Connecticut, United States. The population was 22,105 at the 2020 census. The ZIP codes for Watertown are 06795 (for most of the town) and 06779 (for the Oakville section). It is a suburb of Waterbury. ...

, is named for Sir Gordon Wu's wife, Lady Ivy Kwok Wu. *The

Wah Yan College Cats Wah Yan College Cats is a non-profit organization in Wah Yan College, Hong Kong which aims at looking after homeless cats which appeared in the campus of the college. It is the first to adopt the concept of college cats in Hong Kong. The teacher ...

rescue project is an animal shelter on the roof of Gordon Wu Hall, Wah Yan College, Hong Kong.

References

External links

Hopewell Holdings

"Whose Interest should Regulators Protect & How?"
{{DEFAULTSORT:Wu, Gordon 1935 births Living people Alumni of Wah Yan Hong Kong billionaires Hong Kong chief executives Hong Kong businesspeople Hong Kong hoteliers Hong Kong real estate businesspeople Hopewell Holdings Knights Commander of the Order of St Michael and St George Princeton University alumni Members of the National Committee of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference Hong Kong Affairs Advisors Members of the Selection Committee of Hong Kong Members of the Election Committee of Hong Kong, 1998–2000 Members of the Election Committee of Hong Kong, 2000–2005 Members of the Election Committee of Hong Kong, 2007–2012 Members of the Election Committee of Hong Kong, 2012–2017 Members of the Election Committee of Hong Kong, 2017–2021 Members of the Election Committee of Hong Kong, 2021–2026

Background

Business

Political stance

Hopewell Holdings

Affiliations

Honours and awards

Honours

Honorary degrees

Other awards

Trivia

See also

References

External links