For decades, aspiring Hong Kongers dreamt of emulating the rags-to-riches rise of Li Ka-shing, the wealthiest man in a city built by commerce, improvisation and not a little luck. But when the 89-year-old billionaire
announced his retirement in March, his right-hand man Canning Fok was one of many warning that his like may never be seen again in the semi-autonomous Chinese territory.
“If I was young, I wouldn’t work in Hong Kong,” said the managing director of Mr Li’s main holding company, CK Hutchison, and one of the city’s best-paid executives, earning US$27m last year. “I wouldn’t spend HK$10m [$1.3m] on a 300 square foot apartment, I’d go over there [to mainland China] and spend HK$2m and put HK$8m into a start-up.”