43 Albert Yeung
CHAIRMAN
Emperor Group
CLAIMS TO FAME
• Pioneering VIP investor at his pal Stanley Ho’s Casino Lisboa
• Grand Emperor Hotel has faux Coldstream Guards at its entrance and real gold bars in its lobby
POWER SCORE 601 LAST YEAR 42
Before Venetian Macao, Grand Emperor brought a dash of European palace ambience to Macau. There’s a mock antique carriage outside, actors portraying Britain’s Coldstream Guards at the door and 78 (why not 88?) one kilogram gold bars embedded in the lobby floor. It all adds pizzazz – and these days, social media exposure – to this SJM satellite casino just west of the Lisboa complex with 300 guest rooms and six stories of gaming, featuring three VIP clubs.
Emperor Chairman Albert Yeung wound his father’s watch shop into a suite of five Hong Kong listed companies and a speed dial list featuring the likes of leading Hong Kong tycoon Li Ka Shing and Stanley Ho. In the heyday of Mr Ho’s Macau casino monopoly, he enlisted Mr Yeung as an early investor in Casino Lisboa’s VIP rooms; that market segment became the backbone of Grand Emperor’s business. In the 1990s, Mr Yeung returned the favor by flipping a casino license in Vietnam to Mr Ho.
Beyond gaming and retail, Emperor is a powerhouse in Hong Kong entertainment, including music and films. Mr Yeung counts Jackie Chan as not just a friend who attended the 2006 opening of Grand Emperor, but a minority investor in the project.
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