Asia's richest families

With Asia 's culture of family businesses, it is no wonder that many of the region's
largest companies are family firms, with members of the family taking part. A
recent report on CNBC.com compiled a list of Asia's wealthiest families, with data
from Wealth-X, a research firm that provides information to private banks and
consulting firms.Net worth was calculated based on public and private holdings,
estimated cash salaries, dividends, and all other investible assets. For each of the
families in the list, at least two members play an active part in the business.

10. Wang Family

Country: Taiwan
Business: Formosa Plastics Group
Estimated net worth: $8.6 billion
The Wang family are founders of Formosa Plastics Group, one of the world's
largest plastic manufacturers and Taiwan 's biggest diversified company. The
firm is also one of the major petrochemical producers in Asia and controls
more than 100 companies including hospitals and schools.
Brothers Yung-ching (pictured) and Yung-tsai Wang founded the group in
1958. Rising from modest roots with Yung-ching only having an elementary
school education, the brothers turned the company into one Asia's biggest
industry groups, with four major publicly listed units Formosa
Petrochemical, Formosa Plastics, Nan Ya Plastics and Formosa Chemicals &
Fibre. Both brothers retired from their official posts in 2006 and passed on the
reins for the group to a committee, which includes Yung-ching's daughter
Cher Wang and Yung-tsai's son Wen Yuang Wang. Founder Wang
Yung-ching died in 2008 at the age of 91 with an estimated fortune of $5.5
billion, according to Forbes. The business tycoon is survived by his three
wives and 10 children.
Cher Wang, 53, the daughter of Yung-ching, has come closest out of all
siblings in matching her father's success. Her smartphone company HTC had
revenues of $9.8 billion in 2010. Cher and her husband Wen Chi Chen are
ranked the richest people in Taiwan by Forbes, with an estimated net worth of
$8.8 billion this year.

9. Ng Family
Country: Singapore
Business: Far East Organization, Sino Group
Estimated net worth: $8.9 billion
The Ng family owns Singapore 's largest private property development firm
Far East Organization and Hong Kong-based sister company Sino Group.
Together, the firms are one of Asia 's largest real estate groups with annual
revenue of $4.3 billion.
The companies were founded by Ng Teng Fong, who died from a brain
hemorrhage in 2010 at the age of 82. Ng was well known for his frugal
lifestyle, living in the same home for 30 years even as his wealth grew. After
his death, Ng's older son Robert (pictured), 59, took over the reins at Sino
Group, while younger son Philip heads the Far East Organization. The firm's
presence in Singapore is renowned, with ownership of historical landmarks
like the Fullerton Hotel along with 700 other properties. A big chunk of the
family's fortune also comes from its five publicly-listed subsidiaries.
In July, reports surfaced that the Far East Organization planned to raise at
least $410 million by listing some of its hotel and serviced residence assets in

a real estate investment trust (REIT) next year. Singapore 's REIT market is
the third-largest in the world after Japan and Australia .

8. Hartono Family
Country: Indonesia
Business: Djarum Group
Estimated net worth: $11 billion
The Hartono family is the richest family in Indonesia and owners of one of the
world's biggest clove-flavored cigarette makers Djarum Group. The group
also has a majority stake in one of the country's biggest banks Bank
Central Asia, from which the family gets the bulk of their fortune.
Brothers Robert Budi Hartono and Michael Bambang Hartono inherited their
wealth from their Chinese father Oei Wie Gwan, who founded Djarum in
1951. After his death in 1963, the brothers took over the business, invested in
research and development, and began exporting cigarettes almost 10 years
later. The company's tobacco products accounted for 97 percent of the U.S.
clove cigarette market in 2009, before the Obama administration banned the
sale of flavored cigarettes other than menthol, because critics claimed they
appealed to teenagers.

Robert Budi Hartono's son Armand Wahyudi (pictured) is also involved in

the family business and has been the director of Bank Central Asia since
2009. With the recent market volatility, the Hartono family's wealth has also
shrunk. In the two weeks to Oct. 5, Robert Budi saw his wealth drop by 8
percent to $10.5 billion, according to newspaper reports in Indonesia .

7. Lee Kun Hee & family

Country: South Korea
Business: Samsung Group
Estimated net worth: $11.6 billion
Lee Kun Hee (pictured) is the chairman of Samsung Electronics, the flagship
company of the Samsung Group, South Korea 's biggest business
conglomerate with nearly 70 affiliates. The group accounts for about one fifth
of the country's GDP.
The Samsung Group was founded by Lee Kun Hee's father Lee Byung Chull
in 1938. Kun Hee, the third son, became chairman of the firm after his father's
death in 1987. He's been credited with turning the company into a major
global player in the technology industry. Samsung Electronics is now the
world's biggest chipmaker, the second biggest smartphone maker after Apple,

and competes with Hewlett Packard for the title of the world's largest
technology firm by revenue. Other family members in the business include
Kun Hee's only son and heir apparent, Jay Y. Lee, who is president of
Samsung Electronics, and daughter Lee Boo Jin, who is the senior vice
president of the group's luxury hotel chain Shilla Hotels and Resorts.
But as head of the group, Lee Kun Hee has also faced a string of controversies
in recent years. The 69-year-old was convicted of tax evasion and breach of
trust in 2008 and given a three-year prison sentence, but was later pardoned
by the country's President in 2009. During that period he stepped away from
the company for two years and returned in 2010.

6. Kuok Family
Country: Malaysia , Singapore
Business: Kuok Group
Estimated net worth: $16.1 billion
The Kuok family is the richest family in Southeast Asia, and owners of the
Kuok Group one of Asia's most diversified firms with interests in
agriculture, real estate, and financial services, to name a few.
The Malaysian group was founded in 1949 by the three Kuok brothers, the

youngest of whom is Robert Kuok (pictured), now 88. Starting out in

agricultural trading, the group expanded to Singapore in 1952, and then went
on to open operations in Thailand , Indonesia , Hong Kong and China .
Robert's son Khoon Chen, 57, is the executive director of Kuok Group and its
subsidiary Kerry Properties, Hong Kong 's largest property development firm.
His younger son Khoon Ean, 56, is the chairman of hotel chain Shangri-La
Asia. However, the family's biggest source of wealth comes from its majority
stake in Wilmar International, the world's largest publicly-listed palm oil
company. Robert's 61-year-old nephew Khoon Hong is the chairman of
Wilmar International.
The palm oil giant has recently recovered after two quarters of poor results in
the second half of last year, during which it posted pre-tax losses of more than
$200 million from its oil seeds and grains business. The company reported a
56 percent increase in revenue in the three months ending June to $10.6
billion, compared to a year ago.

5. Sunil Mittal & Family

Country: India
Business: Bharti Group

Estimated net worth: $16.5 billion

Sunil Bharti Mittal is the founder of the Bharti Group, and chairman of
flagship firm Bharti Airtel , India 's largest mobile phone provider. It's also
the world's fifth-largest telecom with over 200 million customers.
Mittal (pictured) founded the group in 1976, at the age of 18, as a bicycle
parts manufacturer with less than $500 from his father. The 54-year-old
tycoon went on to establish Bharti Telecom, the first company in India to
introduce push-button telephones in the 1980s and fax machines and cordless
phones a decade later. The group now has interests in retail, financial services
and manufacturing, with operations in 19 countries. Brothers Rakesh and
Rajan Mittal (pictured) are also involved in the family business as heads of
the retail and agriculture operations.
Sunil Mittal's twin sons Kavin and Shravin, 25, have also recently made news
by joining the family business. Kavin will head a joint venture with Japanese
telecom giant Softbank to develop social media, gaming, and e-commerce
businesses in an effort accelerate the spread of mobile internet in India . The
country is home to the world's second-biggest mobile phone market with
nearly 866 million subscribers.

4. Kwok Family
Country: Hong Kong
Business: Sun Hung Kai Properties
Estimated net worth: $22 billion
The Kwok family are the founders of Sun Hung Kai (SHK) Properties
Asia 's largest property developer by market value.
The company was founded in 1963 by mainland Chinese businessman Tak
Seng Kwok, and partners Fung King Hey and Lee Shau Kee. It was listed on
the Hong Kong Stock Exchange in 1972 and soon became one of the top firms
on the benchmark by market cap. The firm's market cap now stands at $34.25
billion. Tak Seng died in 1990, leaving the reins of the family business to his
wife, Kwong Siu-hing, and their three sons, Raymond (pictured left), Thomas
(pictured), and Walter Kwok. The company has continued to do well because
of Hong Kong's and China 's red-hot property markets. Last month, the group
posted a 55 percent rise in underlying profit to $2.75 billion for the year ended
June. The group completed construction of Hong Kong's tallest building in
2010 the International Commerce Center marking another milestone
for the company.
The family has also made headlines with a bitter feud and court battle, which
led the eldest son Walter, 66, to step down as chairman of the firm he worked
at for 33 years in 2008. His mother Kwong Siu Hing, who is the controlling
shareholder of the group, took over the leading role, with younger brothers
Thomas and Raymond managing operations.

3. Lakshmi Narayan Mittal & Family

Country: Non-resident Indian
Business: ArcelorMittal
Estimated net worth: $28 billion
Lakshmi Narayan Mittal is the founder of ArcelorMittal the world's
biggest steel-producing company. Mittal is also considered the sixth-richest
man in the world, according to Forbes magazine.
The steel tycoon, 61, founded the company in 1989 as Mittal Steel, parting
ways from his India-based family business to venture out on his own. The
firm went on to merge with Arcelor in 2006 to form its current conglomerate,
based in Luxembourg . Mittal (pictured - left) is the chairman and CEO of the
group and owns 40 percent of its shares. Other family members involved in
the business include his son and heir apparent Aditya, who is the CFO, while
daughter Vanisha (pictured - right) is one of 11 board members.
Vanisha's 2004 wedding to Amit Bhatia (pictured - right) made headlines for
its extravagance and is considered the third most expensive wedding in
modern times, costing a whopping $60 million. The wedding took place at
France 's Versailles Palace and the senior Mittal reportedly paid for 1,000

guests to stay one week at five-star hotels in Paris .

The family is continuing to expand globally. ArcelorMittal recently joined
forces with U.S. coal giant Peabody to buy a nearly 60 percent stake in the
world's biggest coking coal producer Macarthur Coal for $5 billion.

2. Li Ka-shing & Family

Country: Hong Kong
Businesses: Cheung Kong, PCCW, Hutchison Whampoa
Estimated net worth: $32 billion
Li Ka-shing is considered one of the most powerful business figures in Asia,
and his companies have a total market cap of $92 billion (HKD 710 billion)
on the Hong Kong stock exchange.
Starting from humble beginnings, the Chinese business magnate quit school
at age 12 and fled from mainland China to Hong Kong with his family in
1928. After working at a plastics company, Ka-shing (pictured - right) started
his own plastic manufacturing business at age 22, which is now Cheung Kong
Industries one of Hong Kong 's leading real estate investment firms. The
business was publicly listed in 1972 and continued to expand, acquiring
Hutchison Whampoa and Hong Kong Electric, to name a few. Ka-shing's

business is now so diversified that it includes everything from shipping and

telecommunications to biotechnology, and operates companies in China , the
U.K. , and Australia . His two sons, Victor Tzar Kuoi (pictured), 47, and
Richard Tzar Kai Li, 44, are leading businessmen in their own right. Victor
heads Cheung Kong, Hutichson Whampoa, and KC Life Sciences and is seen
as the heir-apparent, while Richard is the chairman of telecommunications
firm PCCW.
Eighty-three-year-old Ka-shing's reputation for savvy business deals has
earned him the nickname "superman" by local media. In August, the tycoon
made headlines by announcing the biggest takeover of a British listed
company this year. He agreed to buy utility Northumbrian Water Group for
$3.8 billion.

1. Ambani Family
Country: India
Business: Reliance Industries & Reliance Group
Estimated net worth: $37.6 billion
The Ambanis are the richest family in the Asia-Pacific region, and founders
of Reliance Industries India 's largest publicly traded company by market

cap, at $55.6 billion.

The company was founded by Dhirubhai Hirachand Ambani in 1966 as a
textile business and has since grown to have interests in petrochemicals,
communications and power. Dhirubhai's tale of humble beginnings from a
worker to a business tycoon lifted him to icon status in India . Reliance
Industries went public in 1977, selling shares to the public. The company's
annual meetings were held in stadiums to accommodate the masses.
Following Dhirubhai's death in 2002, his sons Mukesh (pictured - right) and
Anil Ambani (pictured) took over the family business, but a feud between the
brothers led the group to be divided in 2006. Older brother Mukesh, 54, took
over Reliance Industries, which accounts for the group's oil assets, while
Anil, 52, is the chairman of Reliance Group, which has interests in telecom,
power, and healthcare, to name a few sectors.
No stranger to controversy, the Ambani family made headlines over the past
decade for official investigations into its business practices and allegations of
corruption. Last month, reports surfaced that federal authorities were
examining Anil Ambani's role in an alleged multi-billion-dollar telecom
licensing scandal. Mukesh Ambani, meanwhile, has garnered global attention
by building the most expensive home in the world, in Mumbai, at a cost of
about $1 billion