Li Ka-shing

Li Ka-shing was born in Chaozhou, China in 1928 and fled to Hong Kong with his family at age 12 during the Second Sino-Japanese War. Starting work as a factory hand after his father died of tuberculosis, he founded Cheung Kong Industries in 1950, initially manufacturing plastic flowers. Through astute real estate investments in the 1970s and bold acquisitions, he transformed the company into Cheung Kong Holdings, one of Hong Kong's largest property developers. In 1979, he made a landmark acquisition of Hutchison Whampoa from HSBC, transforming it into a global conglomerate with operations in ports, retail (Watsons), telecommunications, and energy. His holding company CK Hutchison now spans operations in over 50 countries. Known for early identification of technology opportunities, Li invested early in Facebook, Siri (acquired by Apple), Spotify, Impossible Foods, and hundreds of other technology companies. He stepped down as chairman of CK Hutchison and CK Asset in 2018, with his son Victor Li succeeding him.