Hong Kong construction titan turned Macau casino boss Lui Che-Woo dies aged 95

HONG KONG (Reuters) – Lui Che Woo, the casino tycoon who helped propel Macau to eclipse rival Las Vegas in gambling revenues, has died at the age of 95, his company said in a statement late on Monday.

Lui, chairman of Macau casino company Galaxy Entertainment (OTC:), died in Hong Kong on Nov. 7, it said, adding that his “vision, tremendous leadership and guidance” were the foundation for the group’s development and continued success.

Also the chairman of K. Wah Group, a Hong Kong-listed company focused on construction and quarry mining before turning to property, Lui was widely recognised in both Hong Kong and Macau as an influential businessman with close ties to the Chinese government.

One of Hong Kong’s richest men, Lui kept a low profile and was always seen wearing a flat cap as he went about the city and when he attended press conferences.

A member of China’s national advisory body, the Chinese People’s Political Consultative Conference, Lui had close ties to Beijing and was part of a business delegation that met with President Xi Jinping in 2014 in China’s capital.

Galaxy Entertainment holds one of six coveted gaming licenses that were granted after Macau liberalised the casino industry in 2002.

Competing with rivals like the now deceased Stanley Ho, whose family runs the SJM Holdings (OTC:) casino empire, the late U.S. billionaire Sheldon Adelson and Wynn Resorts (NASDAQ:) founder Steve Wynn, Lui steered Galaxy to become of Macau’s top operators.

It operates several large casino resorts in Macau, both on the Las Vegas-style Cotai strip and on the teeming main peninsula.

EARLY LIFE

Born on Aug. 9, 1929, in Jiangmen city located in China’s southern province of Guangdong, Lui moved to Hong Kong with his family aged 4. During Japan’s occupation of the territory in the 1940s, Lui started working in a food manufacturing and distribution business at the age of 13.

He then went on to start businesses in car parts, heavy machinery, quarrying and construction materials, according to his 2017 biography.

In the 1960s, he switched to property investments and added hotels to his portfolio of businesses in the 1980s.

His company K. Wah has over 200 subsidiaries globally, including in mainland China, Hong Kong, Macau and southeast Asia.

A prominent philanthropist, Lui supported the development of medical care, education and information technology.

He also offered an annual cash award of HK$20 million ($2.57 million) to individuals or organisations who “unselfishly promoted world civilisation through sustainable development, contributions to the welfare of mankind and promotion of positive life attitude,” according to K.Wah.

MACAU EMPIRE

Lui, who is survived by his wife Chiu Kam Ping and five children, remained heavily involved in the casino industry, even while handing much of the day to day running of Galaxy to his son Francis.

Francis, who is Galaxy’s deputy chairman, has been key in developing the company’s projects in Macau, where it owns the most land of all the operators on the Cotai strip. Lui’s other children are also involved in various parts of the family business around the world.

Galaxy’s Macau properties include large-scale resorts on Cotai with facilities including the territory’s largest indoor arena, which was unveiled last December.

A new Galaxy chairman will be announced in “due course” the company said, adding that Lui’s death would not have any impact on the group’s operations.

($1 = 7.7756 Hong Kong dollars)