CLAIMS TO FAME
- Fourth wife of Stanley Ho
- Largest individual shareholder in SJM Holdings
SJM’s star may have faded in recent years – for a variety of reasons including being slow off the mark in Cotai and the legacy impact of Macau’s flailing satellite casinos – but Co-Chairman and Executive Director Angela Leong remains one of the most powerful female gaming identities in Asia.
Leong, the fourth wife of Macau’s casino magnate Stanley Ho, holds a substantial stake in SJM Holdings, although it is her property portfolio that stands her in particularly good shape. Last year she monetized her command over the durable L’Arc and Jai Alai casino-hotel properties with more lucrative revenue deals from fellow SJM board members and in 2024 expanded the deals again, this time for another three years with an increased maximum amount SJM may pay her based on revenues.
The long-term future of Lisboeta, the non-gaming property managed by her son Arnaldo Ho, remains less clear unless Leong can add a gambling element as was hinted at some years ago.
While primary control of SJM has ultimately fallen to the children of Ho’s second wife Lucina Laam, rather than Leong, she remains a significant powerbroker. Notably, she sits 33rd on Forbes’ Hong Kong rich list for 2024 with property interests at the heart of her estimated US$2.4 billion fortune – a decent enough nest egg no matter how SJM’s Macau gaming fortunes fall.
For the full list of 2024 Asian Gaming Power 50 winners, click here.
