Yeoh Tiong Lay (; 18 December 1929 – 18 October 2017) was a Malaysian billionaire businessman and philanthropist. He founded

YTL Corporation YTL Corporation Berhad (, ) is a Malaysian infrastructure conglomerate, founded in 1955 by Yeoh Tiong Lay, after whom the group is named. YTL Corporation Berhad is an integrated infrastructure developer with extensive operations in countries i ...

,YTL Corporation
/ref> Malaysia's largest conglomerate, with interests in construction, utilities, hotels, property development and technology. YTL is based primarily in Malaysia but has extensive operations in Asia, Australia and the United Kingdom, where it owns the utility

Wessex Water Wessex Water Services Limited, known as Wessex Water, is a water supply and sewerage utility company serving an area of South West England, covering 10,000 square kilometres including Bristol, most of Dorset, Somerset and Wiltshire and parts o ...

. In 2013, he established the Yeoh Tiong Lay Centre for Politics, Philosophy & Law at

King's College, London King's College London (informally King's or KCL) is a public university, public research university located in London, England. King's was established by royal charter in 1829 under the patronage of George IV of the United Kingdom, King G ...

with a gift of US$11 million.

Early life

A Malaysian Chinese of

Kinmen Kinmen, alternatively known as Quemoy, is a group of islands governed as a county by the Republic of China (Taiwan), off the southeastern coast of mainland China. It lies roughly east of the city of Xiamen in Fujian, from which it is separat ...

and

Zhangzhou Zhangzhou (), alternately romanized as Changchow, is a prefecture-level city in Fujian Province, China. The prefecture around the city proper comprises the southeast corner of the province, facing the Taiwan Strait and surrounding the prefect ...

Hokkien The Hokkien () variety of Chinese is a Southern Min language native to and originating from the Minnan region, where it is widely spoken in the south-eastern part of Fujian in southeastern mainland China. It is one of the national languages ...

roots, Yeoh Tiong Lay was the third eldest child in his family. He completed his secondary school education at

Hin Hua High School Hin Hua High School () is a Chinese Independent High School in Malaysia. One of the four Chinese Independent Schools in Selangor (and more specifically Klang), it is arguably one of the best-known Chinese independent schools in Selangor. F ...

in Klang, Malaysia.

Career

Yeoh was one of the richest individuals in Malaysia; his family is estimated to have a net worth of US$3 billion as of October 2017.

Personal life

Yeoh married Tan Kai Yong in 1952 and they were married for 65 years until his death in 2017. He is the father of Francis Yeoh, Yeoh Soo Min, Victor Yeoh Seok Kian, Yeoh Seok Hong, Michael Yeoh, Yeoh Soo Keng and Mark Yeoh, all of whom are involved in the YTL Group and leading their own respective divisions. At the time of his death, he had 27 grandchildren (including Ruth Yeoh,

Michelle Yeoh Michelle Yeoh Choo Kheng, ( ; born 6 August 1962) is a Malaysian actress. Credited as Michelle Khan in her early Hong Kong films, she rose to fame in the 1990s after starring in a series of Hong Kong action films where she performed her own ...

Rebekah Yeoh Rebekah Yeoh Pei Wenn is a Malaysian social entrepreneur, businesswoman and philanthropist. She is a Corporate Finance Director at YTL Corporation, Deputy Curator at Global Shapers Community Kuala Lampur, and the founder of Nimble Fingers Camb ...

and Rachel Yeoh) as well as 5 great-grandchildren. Involved with charitable societies in Malaysia, he lent financial support to various educational establishments, and was chairman of

, his alma mater. He died on 18 October 2017.

Honours

Honours of Malaysia

* : ** Medal of the

Order of the Defender of the Realm The Most Esteemed Order of the Defender of the Realm ( ms, Darjah Yang Mulia Pangkuan Negara) is a Malaysian federal award presented for meritorious service to the country. The Order Motto are 'Dipeliharakan Allah-Pangkuan Negara' (By the Grace ...

(PPN) (1967) ** Kesatria Mangku Negara

Officer of the

(KMN) (1983) **

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 ...

(PSM) - Tan Sri (1985) * : ** MY-SAB Order of Kinabalu - SPDK

Grand Commander of the

Order of Kinabalu The Illustrious Order of Kinabalu (Malay: ''Darjah Yang Amat Mulia Kinabalu'') is the only order conferred by the Governor of Sabah, Malaysia. Background The Illustrious Order of Kinabalu is established by virtue of Section 3(a) of State Honou ...

(SPDK) - Datuk Seri Panglima (2013) ** Yeoh was also one of the Pro-Chancellors of

Universiti Malaysia Sabah , image = Seal of Universiti Malaysia Sabah.png , image_size = , caption = Seal , motto = ''Bertekad Cemerlang'' (Malay) Jawi: , mottoeng = Strive to Excel , ...

Kota Kinabalu , image_skyline = , image_caption = From top, left to right, bottom:Kota Kinabalu skyline, Wawasan intersection, Tun Mustapha Tower, Kota Kinabalu Coastal Highway, the Kota Kinabalu City Mosque, the Wism ...

Sabah Sabah () is a state of Malaysia located in northern Borneo, in the region of East Malaysia. Sabah borders the Malaysian state of Sarawak to the southwest and the North Kalimantan province of Indonesia to the south. The Federal Territory o ...

with Tan Sri Datuk Seri Panglima

Musa Aman Musa Bin Haji Aman ( Jawi: موسى بن حاج أمان; born 30 March 1951) is a Malaysian politician who served as the 14th Chief Minister, State Minister of Finance from March 2003 to May 2018, Member of the Sabah State Legislative Ass ...

, the

Chief Minister of Sabah The Ketua Menteri Sabah or Chief Minister of Sabah is the head of government of the Malaysian state of Sabah. Since September 2020, the position has been held by Hajiji Noor from the Malaysian United Indigenous Party (BERSATU), Perikatan Na ...

. * : **

MY-SEL Order of the Crown of Selangor - Knight Grand Commander - SPMS

Knight Grand Commander of the

Order of the Crown of Selangor The Most Illustrious Order of the Crown of Selangor (Bahasa Melayu: ''Darjah Kebesaran Mahkota Selangor Yang Amat Mulia'') is an order awarded by Sultan of Selangor as a reward for general services to the sultan and state of Selangor. It was foun ...

(SPMS) - Dato' Seri (1996)

Foreign honours

* : **

3rd Class, Gold Rays with Neck Ribbon of the Order of the Rising Sun (2008), conferred by the

Emperor of Japan The Emperor of Japan is the monarch and the head of the Imperial Family of Japan. Under the Constitution of Japan, he is defined as the symbol of the Japanese state and the unity of the Japanese people, and his position is derived from "the ...

for his efforts in promoting bilateral relations between Malaysia and Japan. * : ** TWN_Order_of_Brilliant_Star_4Class_BAR

4th class of the Order of Brilliant Star (2015), conferred by the President of the Republic of China

Ma Ying-jeou Ma Ying-jeou ( zh, 馬英九, born 13 July 1950) is a Hong Kong-born Taiwanese politician who served as president of the Republic of China from 2008 to 2016. Previously, he served as justice minister from 1993 to 1996 and mayor of Taipei fro ...

in recognition of his contributions to the educational and cultural development of Taiwan.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Yeoh, Tiong Lay 1929 births 2017 deaths Malaysian billionaires Malaysian Christians Malaysian people of Hokkien descent Malaysian people of Chinese descent Malaysian businesspeople Malaysian company founders Malaysian chairpersons of corporations Recipients of the Order of the Rising Sun, 3rd class Grand Commanders of the Order of Kinabalu Medallists of the Order of the Defender of the Realm Officers of the Order of the Defender of the Realm Commanders of the Order of Loyalty to the Crown of Malaysia Malaysian Protestants Yeoh family Knights Grand Commander of the Order of the Crown of Selangor