Malaysia's wealthiest tycoons grew fortunes by 30%

KUALA LUMPUR: Lee Thiam Wah, founder and CEO of 99 Speed Mart Retail Holdings Bhd, saw his net worth nearly double to US$6.7bil in 2025 as the minimart chain grew by 259 stores to more than 3,000 nationwide.

While Lee experienced a dramatic increase in his personal fortune, he was by no means alone as a total of 41 listees on Malaysia's Top 50 richest list recorded increases to their net worth in 2025.

"An economy that expanded 5.2% in 2025, an appreciating ringgit and a buoyant IPO market that had a total of 60 new listings last year created momentum that bolstered the collective wealth of tycoons on the 2026 Forbes list of Malaysia’s 50 Richest nearly 30% to US$116bil, up from US$90bil last year," according to Forbes Asia.

In its breakdown of the rankings, the media group said the country's long-reigning richest man, Robert Kuok, remained the country's top billionaire for another year as his wealth swelled 19% in 2025.

The business magnate, whose core businesses lie in property, hospitality, agribusiness, logistics and media, outpaced his fellow tycoons for another year with a net worth of US$13.6bil.

Tan Sri Koon Poh Keong and his siblings, the family behind Southeast Asia's largest aluminium smelter group Press Metal Aluminium Holdings Bhd, rose in the ranks to first runner-up position as the company's share price jumped 73% from a year ago following a surge in the price of the metal.

Raking in the biggest gains in doller terms in 2025, their net worth grew a whopping 80% from a year ago to US$9.7bil.

Coming in third place were brothers Datuk Lee Yeow Chor and Datuk Lee Yeow Seng of IOI group, with a combined net worth of US$8.5bil.

Tycoons who did exceptionally well in 2025 included Tan Sri Jeffrey Cheah, who registered a 76% increase in net worth to US$5.3bil. In March, Cheah listed Sunway Bhd's medical arm, Sunway Healthcare Bhd, in an US$732mil initial public offering, the country's largest in nearly a decade.

Meanwhile, a newcomer to the list was Datuk Seri Lee Kar Whatt, co-founder and managing director of dollar store chain Eco-Shop Marketing Bhd, who took his company public in May 2025 in a RM419.9mil fundraiser. He debuted at No.18 with a net worth of US$1.5bil.

The Tiong family made their entry at No.42 with a net worth of US$655mil, having inherited the fortune from Tan Sri Tiong Hiew King, founder of Rimbunan Hijau Group, who died in November 2025.

Chun Jenn Wang, co-founder of ViTrox Bhd, returned to the list in No.47 after shares in the semiconductor player rallied 84% in 2025 amid surging demand for AI-related products.