Eduardo Saverin keeps Singapore rich-list crown despite US$10b hit, OCBC-linked Lee family fortune surges

Singapore's wealthiest individual, Facebook co-founder Eduardo Saverin, maintained his top position on the country's rich list for the fourth year in a row, despite witnessing a loss of over US$10 billion from his wealth. The decline in Saverin's fortune was primarily due to a 25% drop in shares of Meta, the parent company of Facebook, which experienced a 14% fall in second-quarter net profit due to increased investments in artificial intelligence. Nonetheless, Saverin's wealth remained at an impressive US$32.9 billion, sustaining his top spot.

Meanwhile, the OCBC-linked Lee family emerged as the biggest gainers on the latest Singapore rich list, recording an unprecedented 78% increase in their fortune, bringing their combined wealth to US$13.8 billion. This surge was primarily fueled by the growth in Oversea-Chinese Banking Corporation (OCBC), whose shares nearly doubled over the year, driven by the bank's expanding wealth management business. This remarkable rise marked the fourth consecutive appearance of the Lee family in the top five on the list.

Another prominent figure to witness substantial growth was Lim Hock Chee, co-founder and CEO of the Sheng Siong supermarket chain. His family's wealth soared to US$2.7 billion, after Sheng Siong's shares surged by 54% as the retailer continued its expansion in Singapore's heartland estates. This gain was particularly noteworthy, as the overall wealth of the country's richest individuals remained unchanged at US$239 billion, with some technology billionaires facing significant losses.

Among the notable losers were the founders of New York-listed technology group Sea, which owns e-commerce platform Shopee. Intensifying competition from TikTok Shop and mounting pressure on e-commerce margins resulted in a decline of about a third in Sea's shares, wiping nearly US$5.9 billion off the combined fortunes of the co-founders. These setbacks impacted the ranks of several other high-profile technology billionaires as well.