Tan Sri Dr Lim Wee Chai is a Malaysian businessman. He is the Executive Chairman and Founder of

Top Glove Corporation Bhd Top Glove Corporation Berhad is a Malaysian rubber glove manufacturer who also specialises in face masks, dental dams, and other products. The company owns and operates 50 manufacturing facilities in Malaysia, Thailand, China, and Vietna ...

, a glove manufacturing company, which was founded in 1991 and is listed on

Bursa Malaysia Bursa Malaysia is the stock exchange of Malaysia. It is one of the largest bourses in ASEAN. It is based in Kuala Lumpur and was previously known as the Kuala Lumpur Stock Exchange (KLSE). It provides a full integration of transactions, offeri ...

(Kuala Lumpur Stock Exchange) and the main board of the Singapore Exchange (SGX). Lim was listed by Forbes as Malaysia's 8th richest person in 2021.

Early life and education

Lim was born and raised in the Chinese New Village of Titi, Jelebu, Negeri Sembilan. He grew up in his family's shophouse. He attended SJK(C) Chun Yin for his primary education and secondary education at the SM Undang Jelebu. Lim’s family ran a rubber trading business, and he would help out in the estate during weekends. Lim graduated with a Bachelor of Science Degree with Honours in Physics in 1982, from

University Malaya The University of Malaya ( ms, Universiti Malaya, UM; abbreviated as UM or informally the Malayan University) is a public research university located in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. It is the oldest and highest ranking Malaysian institution of highe ...

. After graduation, he worked as an air conditioner sales executive in

OYL Industries OYL Industries Berhad (OYL Industries Limited) was a member of the Hong Leong Group Malaysia, until its 2006 acquisition by Japan's Daikin Industries. OYL was one of the largest air conditioner manufacturers, and post merger, made Daikin the numbe ...

, a Malaysian air conditioner manufacturer. He obtained a Masters of Business Administration in 1985 from Sul Ross State University in Texas, United States. Lim returned to Malaysia and continued working under his former employer as a sales manager.

Top Glove and honorary degrees

In 1991, Lim founded Top Glove with a factory and glove production line. In 2015, he obtained his PhD in Management from the

University of Selangor The University of Selangor (abbreviation: UNISEL) is a private university in Selangor, Malaysia, wholly owned and managed by the Selangor state government independently — without funding from the Malaysian federal government (and is thus r ...

in Malaysia, and was conferred an Honorary Doctorate in Business Administration by Oklahoma City University in 2016. In August 2018, Lim was also conferred an Honorary Doctorate in Entrepreneurship by

Management & Science University Management & Science University (abbreviated as MSU Malaysia or simply MSU) is a private university in Malaysia located in Shah Alam, Selangor. The university was founded in 2001 as University College of Technology & Management Malaysia before of ...

, Shah Alam, Malaysia. In October 2020, Lim was conferred an Honorary Doctor of Philosophy (PhD) Degree in Business Management by

University of Cyberjaya University of Cyberjaya (UoC) is a private university with a focus on healthcare programmes. The university has been operating since its establishment in 2005 and offers over 20 diploma, degree and postgraduate programmes in the fields of me ...

and appointed as an Honorary Professor of the university. In December 2021, Lim was conferred an Honorary Doctorate in Management by

for his contribution to the development of the nation's economy.

Involvement in associations

Lim is the chairman and a non-independent non-executive director of Tropicana Corporation Berhad, president emeritus in 2019/2020 and council member since 2010 of the Federation of Malaysian Manufacturers and Life Honorary Advisor of the Federation of Chinese Associations Malaysia since 2011. He was the President of the Federation of Malaysian Manufacturers (FMM) in 2016/17. Lim served as the Director and Board Member of the Employees Provident Fund (Malaysia) from 2015 to 2020. He also served as a Director and Board Member of University of Malaya from 2015 to 2018.

Honours and awards

Honours of Malaysia

* : **

Commander of the

Order of Loyalty to the Crown of Malaysia The Most Esteemed Order of Loyalty to the Crown of Malaysia ( ms, Darjah Yang Mulia Setia Mahkota Malaysia) is a Malaysian federal award presented for meritorious service to the country and awarded by the sovereign. The order was instituted on ...

(PSM, 2 June 2007) : Tan Sri * : ** MY-PAH Order of Sultan Ahmad Shah of Pahang - Grand Knight - SSAP

Grand Knight of the Order of Sultan Ahmad Shah of Pahang (SSAP, 3 February 2006) : Dato' Sri

Awards

*In 2004, Lim was awarded Master and Country Entrepreneur of Malaysia for the Year by Ernst and Young. * In December 2016, Lim was awarded FMM Icon Award 2016 by the Federation of Malaysian Manufacturers (FMM). * In 2019, Lim was awarded Lifetime Achievement Awards by Entrepreneur Insight at the 100 Most Influential Young Entrepreneurs Award 2019. *In 2020, Lim was awarded Most People Focused CEO (Silver) in HR Excellence Awards 2020.

Philanthropy and charity

Lim is a commissioner and volunteer of Tzu Chi Foundation. Lim was encouraged to volunteer by his wife.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Lim, Wee-Chai Malaysian people of Chinese descent Living people Malaysian billionaires Malaysian company founders 1958 births