Posted on: May 6, 2024, 06:36h.
Last updated on: May 6, 2024, 06:36h.
The mansion where late Macau gambling tycoon Stanley Ho lived with his first wife, Clementina Leitão, is on the market for HK$3 billion (US$383 million).
The residence is located in Hong Kong’s Repulse Bay, which despite the name (origin unknown), is one of the most desirable and most expensive neighborhoods in the world. And despite the hefty price tag, the former Ho place might be something of a “project” for its new owner, having fallen into disrepair since Leitão’s death in 2004, age 80.
Nevertheless, images of the property show an opulent interior, including a large living room, multiple bedrooms, and an entertainment area.
‘King of Gambling’
Ho was known as “the King of Gambling” until his death in May 2020 at the age of 98. Until 2002, when Macau’s government opened its casino market to international operators, Ho held the gambling monopoly in the enclave. His company, SJM Holdings, still owns or operates some 20 casinos, including the iconic Grand Lisboa.
Ho fled to neutral Macau in 1941 to escape the Japanese occupation of Hong Kong with, as he liked to claim, just $10 in his pocket.
In the ensuing decades, Ho helped transform Macau from a sleepy fishing village under Portuguese rule into the gambling capital of the world, and the wealthiest-per-capita GDP area on the planet.
The Repulse Bay property was the childhood home of four of Ho’s children, Jane, Robert, Angela, and Deborah. Jane and Robert died young. Angela and Deborah were involved in a legal squabble over family trusts shortly after their father’s death.
Ho’s declining years were marked by in-fighting among family members who feuded for control of his vast business empire.
Ho himself did little to ensure a smooth transition of power. He had 17 children from four concurrent wives – polygamy was legal in Hong Kong until 1971. He also neglected to leave a will.
Succession Turmoil
Ho’s most famous children are full siblings Pansy, Daisy, and Lawrence, the children of his second wife, Lucina Laam.
Pansy Ho is the managing director of Shun Tak Holdings (STH), the shipping, property, and hospitality company founded by her father. She also owns 29% of the MGM Grand Macau. Daisy is the chairman of SJM Holdings and an executive director of STH. Lawrence is the CEO and chairman of casino giant Melco International.
Sources who spoke to VN Express International claimed that Angela took the decision to put the mansion up for sale to generate more liquidity and investment opportunities for the family.
Some observers have suggested that the sale may help to settle internal family conflicts and disputes.
