Malaysia’s ‘Condom King’ Is Officially One Of The 50 Richest People In The Country
He is the senior executive director of the world's largest condom-manufacturing company.
By Tang Ruxyn — 26 Feb 2016, 05:00 PM — Updated over 8 years ago
Forbes Asia just released the Forbes’ Malaysia’s 50 Richest list, and five newcomers have joined the exclusive club. One of them is Goh Siang, who is in the condom manufacturing business.
Meet the 'Condom King'.
Goh Siang who is the senior executive director of Karex Bhd., the world's largest condom manufacturer, made it to the list at No. 48 with a total net worth of USD205 mil (RM864.5 mil).
Goh's father, Huang Chiat, started the company in 1988. Shares of Karex soared 36 percent during the past year.
The company churns out nearly 4.5 billion pieces of condom a year and recently acquired Medical-Latex, which was its first customer.
Karex manufactures condoms for customers such as Ansell Limited (Lifestyle), Reckitt Benkiser PLC (Durex), Line One Laboratories Inc (Trustex), Global Protection Corp (One), among others.
Karex's clients also include institutional buyers such as United Nation Population Fund (UNFPA), United State Agency for International Development (USAID), Population Service International (PSI), and Marie Stopes International (MSI).
While the richest Malaysians are experiencing a decline in their net worth, four other millionaires got into the Forbes list together with Goh Siang
From left to right; Wong Teek Son, Patrick Grove, Datuk Freddy Lim Nyuk Sang and Tan Sri Kong Hon Kong.
Image via SAYSThe minimum net worth to make the list this year was USD195 million (RM822.3 million), down from US$240 million (RM 1.01 billion).
There are five new names on the 2016 list and they include Wong Teek Son, a glovemaker, who joins the list at No. 40 with USD255 million (RM1.07 billion).
Smart online startups and investments put Patrick Grove on the roster at No. 39 with a net worth of USD260 million (RM1.1 billion).
Palm oil magnate Datuk Freddy Lim Nyuk Sang at No. 50 with USD195 million (RM822.3 million), returns after missing one year, though he’s worth USD35 million (RM148 million) less than in 2014.
Nirvana Asia Ltd group managing director and chief executive officer Tan Sri Kong Hon Kong is at No. 34 with a total net worth of USD325 million (RM1.37 billion).
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It was a difficult year for many businesses but rubber industries are thriving because of the plunge in rubber prices. It was reported that this has lowered the cost of production.
Only six of last year’s 50 fortunes rose this year, while the number of billion-dollar fortunes went down from 16 last year to 12 this year.
Hartalega Holdings Bhd founder and executive chairman Kuan Kam Hon (No. 11, USD1.1 billion (RM4.63 billion) who runs a glove-making business became a new billionaire, up USD120 million (RM505 million) from last year.
Top Glove Group founder, Tan Sri Dr. Lim Wee Chai saw his fortune jumped by 58 percent and ranked at No. 22 this year's list.
Meanwhile, Nan Yang Siang Pau also reported that four tycoons, including the three who were listed in Forbes' Malaysia's 50 Richest list (Kuan Kam Hon, Tan Sri Dr. Lim Wee Chai and Goh Siang), who are doing business in the field related to the production of rubber gloves and condoms are flourishing.
View the full list of the Forbes' Malaysia's 50 Richest here.