The billionaire indicated in October he may sell stakes in Hutchison’s retail unit and Power Assets Holdings Ltd., Hong Kong’s second-largest power supplier, to free up capital to acquire more assets in Europe, where his companies have spent $14.5 billion on acquisitions the past three years, according to data compiled by Bloomberg.
The biggest gainer in Asia was Macau casino mogul Lui Che Woo, who added $14.2 billion to his net worth. Lui’s Hong Kong- listed Galaxy Entertainment Group Ltd. has one of six gambling licenses in the Chinese enclave. The company is the second- largest by revenue and controls almost 20 percent of the city’s casino market.
Galaxy shares soared 129 percent in 2013 as Lui and his son Francis expanded their biggest property, Galaxy Macau, in the city’s Cotai area to capitalize on record visits by gamblers from China.
The title for China’s richest person changed hands twice during the year. Beverage billionaire Zong Qinghou was eclipsed in August by Dalian Wanda Group property and entertainment mogul Wang Jianlin after regulatory filings showed Wang’s non-real estate businesses are more valuable than previously calculated.
Robin Li, founder of Beijing-based Baidu Inc., dethroned Wang in December. China’s most-used search engine rallied 77 percent in 2013. The crown could change again. The country’s top four billionaires all have fortunes of $12 billion or more.
Fast Retailing Inc. Chairman Tadashi Yanai, Japan’s richest man, ended the year with a $20.9 billion fortune, up 66 percent in 12 months. SoftBank Corp. President Masayoshi Son’s wealth more than doubled to $19 billion. SoftBank paid $22 billion to acquire telecommunications provider Sprint Corp. in July, topping a competing offer by Dish Network Corp. billionaire Charlie Ergen.
Ortega Buys
Amancio Ortega held on to his title as Europe’s richest person. Inditex SA, the world’s largest clothing retailer, rose 14 percent during the year. The billionaire bought an office building in London’s West End for 410 million pounds ($679 million), a person with knowledge of the matter said.
Sergey Galitskiy, founder of OAO Magnit, Russia’s largest food retailer, added $5.3 billion to his net worth in 2013, more than any other Russian billionaire. The 46-year-old has a $13.8 billion fortune. The country’s richest person is Alisher Usmanov, 60, with a net worth of $20.2 billion.
Saudi billionaire Prince Alwaleed bin Talal remained the Middle East’s wealthiest person. He ended the year with a net worth of $32.4 billion, up $3.7 billion for the year. Aliko Dangote is Africa’s richest person. The founder of Dangote Group, one of the continent’s largest conglomerates, added $9.2 billion during the year. He’s the 30th-richest person in the world.