After more than four decades serving on the board of Shun Tak Holdings Limited, Macau gambling tycoon Stanley Ho is reportedly stepping down as the firm’s Chairman and is to hand the reins for the giant conglomerate to his daughter, Pansy Ho.
According to a report from the Reuters news service citing a Friday filing with the Hong Kong Stock Exchange, 95-year-old Ho is set to assume the title of Chairman Emeritus for Shun Tak Holdings Limited, which has interests in property, shipping, and investment businesses while additionally owning Macau casino operator SJM Holdings Limited.
The elder Ho has reportedly served on the board of Shun Tak Holdings Limited for 44 years but began decentralizing his vast business empire, which encompasses interests in China, Portugal, North Korea, Vietnam, the Philippines, Mozambique, Indonesia and East Timor, after suffering a stroke in 2009. He has had four wives and 16 children and is one of Asia’s richest men with an estimated personal fortune of approximately $2 billion.
For her part, 54-year-old Pansy Ho was appointed as Managing Director of Shun Tak Holdings Limited in 1999 before subsequently being named as its Executive Chairman. Her younger sisters moreover hold positions at the Hong Kong-listed firm with Daisy serving as Deputy Managing Director while Maisy works as Executive Director.
Reuters reported that the younger Ho’s elevation will be subject to shareholder assent at the firm’s next annual general meeting while she is to receive an annual salary of $6,411 for being a director of Shun Tak Holdings Limited along with an additional $7,693 for her role with SJM Holdings Limited while also taking home $102,945 as well as a discretionary bonus every year under her employment contract with the conglomerate.
One of only six concessionaires authorized to operate casino games in Macau, SJM Holdings Limited is responsible for 19 gambling properties in the former Portuguese enclave including Casino Oceanus at Jai Alai, Grand Lisboa Macau, Babylon Casino, L’Arc Macau and Casino Golden Dragon while some of its licenses have been sub-let to firms including MGM China Holdings Limited for its MGM Macau venue.