Meet Ong Beng Seng: The Tycoon Involved in CPIB’s Probe with Iswaran

Tycoon Ong Beng Seng has received an arrest notice in connection with the Corruption Practices Investigation Bureau’s (CPIB) probe of Transport Minister S. Iswaran.

Hotel Properties Limited (HPL), where Ong is the founder and managing director, stated on Friday (July 14) that the 77-year-old is cooperating with the anti-graft body to provide information about his interactions with Iswaran.

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Ong has posted bail of S$100,000, and no charges have been filed against him. HPL stated in its Singapore Exchange announcement that he was traveling abroad on Friday and would surrender his passport to the CPIB upon his return.

Here’s what we know about the property mogul.

Who is Ong Beng Seng?

Ong, also known as OBS, was born in Sabah, Malaysia in 1946.

He had wealthy parents and moved to Singapore at the age of four. He attended Anglo-Chinese School, where he excelled in sprinting and long jump, and obtained an insurance degree in Britain.

He then worked in international insurance underwriting and broking in Europe, London, and Southeast Asia before joining Motor & General Underwriters Investment Holdings in the late 1960s.

Ong married Christina Fu, a prominent businesswoman, in 1972. In 1975, he joined Kuo, an oil trading company owned by his father-in-law Peter Fu. During this time, he made millions by accurately predicting oil price fluctuations. The capital accumulated during this period reportedly supported his later investments and property development.

Ong established HPL in 1980 and acquired several hotels and prime properties along Orchard Road. The company was listed in Singapore in 1982.

As of December 2022, HPL’s hotel division owned 38 hotels and resorts across 15 countries, including Singapore, the United States, the Maldives, and Italy. It holds brands such as Four Seasons Hotels & Resorts, Hard Rock Hotels, and Marriott International.

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Ong’s wife manages Como Hotels and Resorts, retail empire Club 21, and London-listed handbag maker Mulberry.

In September 2022, Forbes ranked the couple as the 24th richest in Singapore, estimating their net worth to be US$1.7 billion (S$2.2 billion). They have a son and a daughter.

Formula One

Ong, an avid motorsport enthusiast, is credited with bringing Formula One to Singapore in 2008, hosting the sport’s first-ever night race. He serves as the chairman of the Singapore Grand Prix.

The race, held on the Marina Bay Street Circuit and famed for its blend of top musical acts and on-track action, has taken place every year since, except for 2020 and 2021, due to the pandemic.

In January 2022, Singapore extended its hosting agreement for another seven years. This was the fourth renewal and the longest extension so far.

Property dealings

In 1996, Ong made headlines when then-Senior Minister Lee Kuan Yew and his son, Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong, purchased four luxury condominiums in the Orchard area – developed by HPL – at a discount.

The Lees had received discounts ranging from 5 to 12 percent on two units in Nassim Jade and two units in Scotts 28.

It was determined that the property purchases were legitimate, and the discounts were offered to early buyers. The discounted amounts were donated to charity.

The matter was addressed in Parliament, and then-Prime Minister Goh Chok Tong cleared the Lees of any wrongdoing.

In 2018, Ong was linked to a scheme involving the former president of the Maldives, Abdulla Yameen, and other officials leasing at least 50 Maldivian islands to tourism developers without a public tender.

According to the Organised Crime and Corruption Reporting Project (OCCRP), Ong allegedly provided luxury hotel accommodations to the president and vice-president while HPL was negotiating to lease two islands.

OCCRP is a global network of investigative journalists founded in 2006.

Yameen and his deputy Ahmed Adeeb were imprisoned for their involvement in the affair, but Ong was not charged.

In 2021, HPL acquired a resort in the Maldives with 85 villas. The development is currently undergoing refurbishment and is set to open in the second half of this year.

In May 2022, HPL, along with state-owned investment firm Temasek, purchased the real estate assets of Singapore Press Holdings, the former publisher of The Straits Times, for US$2.8 billion. The assets include Paragon shopping mall and the Seletar shopping mall.