This article first appeared in The Edge Malaysia Weekly on October 23, 2017 - October 29, 2017

HUMBLE, low-profile, hardworking, smart and focused. These are but some of the adjectives that have been used to describe the late

Tan Sri Dr Yeoh Tiong Lay, the grand patriarch and founder of local conglomerate YTL Group. He died peacefully last Wednesday at the age of 88.

To many in the business community, Yeoh was widely regarded as an outstanding entrepreneur and experienced builder, but more admirably, a generous philanthropist and sincere friend.

Within the sprawling business empire of the YTL Group, there are four listed vehicles — YTL Corp Bhd, YTL Power International Bhd, YTL Land & Development Bhd and YTL Hospitality REIT. YTL Cement Bhd, one of the fastest-growing cement companies in the country, was taken private in 2012, while information technology (IT) firm YTL e-Solutions Bhd was privatised last year.

Today, YTL Corp is among the 30 largest companies listed on the Main Market of Bursa Malaysia, forming one of the component companies of the FTSE Bursa Malaysia KLCI, the stock exchange’s primary benchmark index. In addition, it has been listed on the Tokyo Stock Exchange since 1996, the first non-Japanese Asian company to list there.

YTL Corp is the parent company of the other three listed ones: it has a 47% direct stake in YTL Power (global utility giant), 65% in YTL Land (property developer) and 55% in YTL REIT (pure play hospitality REIT).

Together, the four listed companies have a combined market capitalisation of about RM28 billion and total assets of over RM110 billion. Meanwhile, the YTL Group also has a stake in Starhill Global REIT, which is listed on the Singapore Exchange and had a market capitalisation of S$1.69 billion as at last Friday.

With a fortune of US$2 billion (RM8.45 billion), Yeoh was ranked by Forbes as Malaysia’s seventh-richest man and one of the 1,000 richest men in the world. He was executive chairman of YTL Corp and YTL Power.

His eldest son, Tan Sri Dr Francis Yeoh Sock Ping, is managing director of YTL Corp, YTL Power and YTL Land, and his six other children are actively involved in the family business as well.

Business aside, Yeoh had a deep passion for philanthropy and served as the chairman of YTL Foundation. Education was especially close to his heart as his wife, Puan Sri Tan Kai Yong, was a teacher.

He was chairman of the board of governors of his alma mater, Hin Hua High School Klang, and spearheaded its transformation into one of the best independent Chinese secondary schools in the country.

The prominent and well-respected leader in the Chinese community was honorary president of the Associated Chinese Chambers of Commerce & Industry Malaysia, the Malaysia-China Chamber of Commerce and the Federation of Hokkien Associations of Malaysia.

For a look back at the late Yeoh, we republish a rare interview with him in 2011.

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