Dato' Datuk (or its variant Dato or Datu) is a Malay title commonly used in Brunei, Indonesia, and Malaysia, as well as a traditional title by Minangkabau people in West Sumatra, Indonesia. The title of the wife of Datuk is Datin. Origin The oldes ...

Ong Beng Seng ( born January 1946) is a Singapore-based Malaysian billionaire businessman and husband of

Christina Ong Christina Ong (née Fu, born October 1947) is a Singaporean businesswoman who owns the COMO Group. As of 2021, Christina and her husband Ong Beng Seng were ranked 25th on Singapore's richest list. Career Ong opened a clothing store in 1972, pr ...

. He is the founder of the Singapore-based organisation Hotel Properties, and a shareholder in many businesses. ''

Forbes ''Forbes'' () is an American business magazine owned by Integrated Whale Media Investments and the Forbes family. Published eight times a year, it features articles on finance, industry, investing, and marketing topics. ''Forbes'' also r ...

'' estimates the net worth of Ong and his wife at $1.8 billion (as of July 2014), making them the 15th richest people in Singapore.

Early life

Ong was born in January 1946, in Malaysia. When he was four years old, his family relocated to Singapore. His career began when he joined an insurance firm for ships. In 1975, he joined

Kuo International "Guo", written in Chinese: 郭, is one of the most common Chinese surnames and means "the wall that surrounds a city" in Chinese. It can also be transliterated into English as Cok, Gou, Quo, Quach, Quek, Que, Keh, Kuo, Kwo, Kuoch, Kok, Koc, ...

, founded by businessman Peter Fu Yun Siak and there he met his later-to-be spouse, Christina.

Career

After beginning his trading career at Kuo International, Ong went on to found his own firm,

Hotel Properties Limited A hotel is an establishment that provides paid lodging on a short-term basis. Facilities provided inside a hotel room may range from a modest-quality mattress in a small room to large suites with bigger, higher-quality beds, a dresser, a ref ...

. Today, he controls many businesses, including a few based in Bond Street in London, and his investments are worth tens of millions of dollars. He is a well-established hotelier, having bought and built many hotels worldwide. Ong is credited as one among the few who brought the

Singapore Grand Prix The Singapore Grand Prix; ta, சிங்கப்பூர் கிராண்ட் பிரிக்ஸ் is a motor racing event which forms part of the Formula One World Championship. The event takes place on the Marina Bay Street Cir ...

to the country, the first

Formula One Formula One (also known as Formula 1 or F1) is the highest class of international racing for open-wheel single-seater formula racing cars sanctioned by the Fédération Internationale de l'Automobile (FIA). The World Drivers' Championship, ...

night race.

Personal life

A "glitzy figure in Singapore and abroad", Ong is married to

(née Fu), the daughter of a businessman. They have two children, a daughter and a son. Ong was described by Hilary Clarke of ''

The Independent ''The Independent'' is a British online newspaper. It was established in 1986 as a national morning printed paper. Nicknamed the ''Indy'', it began as a broadsheet and changed to tabloid format in 2003. The last printed edition was publish ...

'' as "media shy" and "notoriously secretive". Despite that, he is known to be well-acquainted with many Hollywood celebrities.

Wealth

Ong's business approach is to "

_As_of_July_2012,_the_Ong_family,_comprising_Ong_and_his_wife,_is_worth_$1.6_list_of_billionaires.html" "title="uy when rents and properties are cheap and sell when they are not." As of July 2012, the Ong family, comprising Ong and his wife, is worth $1.6 list of billionaires">billion Billion is a word for a large number, and it has two distinct definitions: *1,000,000,000, i.e. one thousand million, or (ten to the ninth power), as defined on the short scale. This is its only current meaning in English. * 1,000,000,000,000, i. ...

, based on estimates by Forbes, making the couple Singapore's 10th richest persons.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Ong Beng Seng 1946 births Living people Singaporean billionaires Singaporean businesspeople