Vietnam's Pham Nhat Vuong Tops Southeast Asia's Richest List

Pham Nhat Vuong, chairman of Vietnam's Vingroup, has maintained his position as the richest individual in Southeast Asia. According to Forbes' latest compilation, his net worth has reached $33.6 billion, marking a 19% increase from the beginning of the year. The shares of Vingroup, Vietnam's largest listed company, have risen by approximately 29% year-to-date, while its property arm, Vinhomes, has added 12.9%. Vingroup's revenue in the first quarter surged by 24% year-on-year, partly driven by the robust sales of VinFast electric vehicles, now the best-selling auto brand in Vietnam. Furthermore, VinSpeed, a Vingroup subsidiary, commenced the construction of the $5.7 billion Hanoi-Quang Ninh high-speed railway in April. The project, expected to be completed in 2028, aims to cut travel time between the two localities from two hours to just 23 minutes. Securing the second spot in Southeast Asia's wealth ranking is Enrique Razon Jr., the Philippine ports tycoon, with a net worth of $21.6 billion. The chairman of International Container Terminal Services Inc. (ICTSI) has seen his wealth balloon by over $10 billion within the past 12 months. Shares of ICTSI have jumped 66% year-on-year, fueled by resilient trade volumes, higher tariffs, cargo-service growth, and successful execution across its port network. In third place is Sarath Ratanavadi of Thailand, with a net worth of $17.7 billion. He has emerged as Thailand's biggest wealth gainer, thanks to Gulf Development's successful transformation from a conventional power producer into a broad infrastructure platform spanning electricity, Thailand's dominant mobile operator, banking stakes, and AI data centers. Fourth is another Thai billionaire, Dhanin Chearavanont, with a net worth of $17.6 billion. He and his brothers control CP Group, Thailand's largest conglomerate with businesses in agriculture, food production, retail, telecommunications, real estate, finance, and e-commerce across more than 20 countries. CP Group recently announced plans to invest an additional $600 million to expand its poultry and pork processing operations in Vietnam. Fifth is Jason Chang of Singapore, with a net worth of $17.4 billion. The share price of his Taiwan-listed semiconductor company, ASE Technology Holding, has surged 93% year-to-date, doubling his net worth from the end of last year. The increase in wealth among these tycoons highlights the dynamism of Southeast Asia's economies and the active investment in sectors such as infrastructure, technology, and logistics. Source: VnExpress International