How Singapore’s 4th richest billionaire Kwek Leng Beng's leadership and succession views shape CDL’s family dispute

Now 84, Leng Beng is the executive chairman of Hong Leong Group, a conglomerate founded by his late father, Kwek Hong Png, in 1941. The group’s core businesses span property development, hotels, financial services, trade and industry.

In 1972, it secured a controlling stake in CDL, a company that had been on shaky financial ground just a few years prior.

It was Leng Beng who first urged his father in 1969 to start accumulating shares in CDL, which later became profitable "through strategic diversification into investment properties," according to the company's website.

City Developments Limited Executive Chairman Kwek Leng Beng poses with a scale model of the St Regis Residence during its launch ceremony in Singapore, June 1, 2006. Photo by Reuters

Decades later, however, CDL is embroiled in a different kind of challenge.

Leng Beng, who also serves as CDL’s executive chairman, has filed a lawsuit against his son, Sherman Kwek, CDL’s group CEO, along with several board members and directors, accusing them of governance lapses and an "attempted coup" to consolidate control of the company’s board.

Yet, despite the ongoing power struggle, few would dispute Leng Beng’s track record in elevating the family fortune.

"Work hard, talk less, do more"

According to the tycoon’s biography "Strictly Business: The Kwek Leng Beng Story," one of his guiding principles is simply: "Work hard, talk less, do more."

True to his word, Leng Beng considers himself a man of action rather than talk.

"I’m a boss who says nothing very much but gets things done," he admitted in a late 2023 interview with The Straits Times.

He is known to be impatient, a reputation he has no issue with. He arrives early for meetings, often showing up 20 minutes ahead of schedule, and expects the same from others.

"It’s because I want to get things done," he explained.

He insists business proposals should be concise and has little patience for employees who promote concepts like KPIs without considering their practical implementation, dismissing them as "too academic."

His pragmatic approach to business means he has seen his fair share of open battles, according to Bloomberg.

He famously outwitted Donald Trump by refusing the U.S. tycoon’s request to continue managing New York’s Plaza Hotel after Leng Beng, in partnership with Saudi Prince Alwaleed bin Talal, acquired it in the 1990s. The property was later sold for US$675 million, more than double its purchase price of $325 million.

CDL has since grown to becmoe one of Singapore’s largest property developers with a market capitalization of S$4.6 billion (US$3.4 billion) and properties in nearly 30 countries.

As a result, Leng Beng and his family share a combined net worth of US$11.5 billion, making him the fourth richest billionaire in Singapore, according to Forbes' 2024 Singapore rich list.

For Leng Beng, passion and years of hands-on experience have been the driving forces behind his success.

Family and succession

The businessman also shows his directness when it comes to succession, prioritizing passion for business over mere obligation.

Leng Beng is married to Madam Cecilia Kok, whom he met during her time as a lawyer in Singapore. The couple has two sons, Sherman and Kingston Kwek.

While Sherman has long been involved in the family business, Kingston has pursued a more independent path as a private investor and has served as a non-executive director at First Sponsor Group since 2019.

"I can't force (my children) to do things they don't want," Leng Beng said in an interview cited by The Peak magazine, referring to his younger son.

"At best, he would just be ordinary. You have to be passionate about the job and understand the nuts and bolts of what you have to fix. If not, it's just report after report."

Although his wife is not involved in the business, she has helped select artwork for his hotels and occasionally offers input on his wardrobe choices.

Sherman, meanwhile, joined CDL in 2010 and rose to group CEO in 2018. He became an executive director in 2019.

That same year, he led CDL’s acquisition of a stake in Chinese property group Sincere. The move was initially hailed as a breakthrough for CDL's China expansion and was backed by Leng Beng himself.

However, the deal fell apart, sparking "a rare moment of public discord" within the Kwek family, as described in an excerpt of the tycoon’s biography cited by the South China Morning Post.

The investment ultimately led to a S$1.9 billion (US$1.4 billion) loss in 2020 amid China’s property downturn. CDL later sold its stake in Sincere for a nominal sum of $1 in 2021.

In 2020, Leng Beng’s cousin, Kwek Leng Peck, resigned from his role as CDL’s non-executive and non-independent director, citing conflicts with the board over the Sincere investment.

"It hurt my husband, it hurt my elder son, it hurt me. It was a big letdown," Cecilia said of the event.

Leng Beng had publicly blamed his son for the massive loss, as well as for other underperforming ventures in the U.K.

CDL director Philip Yeo, who backs the chairman amid the boardroom tussle at the firm, has urged Sherman to focus on offsetting the S$1.9 billion loss.

The recommendation may echo Leng Beng’s own philosophy, given he once said in the interview with The Straits Times: "If the mistake is big, you don’t cry over it. You get on with it, make more money to cover the loss."