LUCRATIVE SEAShopee boss becomes Singapore's richest man with USD20.2 billion fortune ~ Linchakin

The most recent update to the Bloomberg Billionaires Index (a daily ranking of the world's richest people) has seen Singaporean tech magnate Forrest Li climb to become the country's richest man, and coincidentally the richest man in all of Southeast Asia.

Li – a naturalized Singaporean citizen born in China – is the co-founder and CEO of internet company Sea Limited, which oversees a slew of digital services including e-commerce, entertainment, and financial services, with notable brands such as Shopee, Garena, and SeaMoney all under the corporate umbrella.

With the company experiencing a surge in stock valuations this year, Li saw his personal net worth rise past to US$20.2 billion on September 1, 2021, which saw him become the richest man in Singapore and Southeast Asia judging by the list alone.

Forrest Li, co-founder and CEO of Sea Limited. IMAGE: Tech In Asia

This new valuation currently puts him ahead of other billionaires from the country as well as around the region, including Singapore's Li Xiting (US$12.1 billion) and Goh Cheng Liang (US$17.9 billion), Malaysia's Robert Kuok (US$19.9 billion), and Indonesia's Budi Hartano (US$16.6 billion).

Business is booming.

While the rankings are subject to change at any given moment due to the volatility of the market and the astronomical figures in play, the rise of Li to become the region's top billionaire is only indicative of his company's success over the past year – with demand for digital services only rising and feeding the valuation of his company.

In 2021 alone, Sea Limited's share prices surged upwards by 67 percent, with its second-quarter earnings report showing a 158 percent revenue increase to US$2.3 billion, with total gross profits coming in at US$930.9 million – which equates to a staggering 363.5 percent year-on-year growth rate.

Unsurprisingly, the group has been named Southeast Asia's most valuable company thanks to the success of business ventures such as Shopee and Garena, which have both grown to become market leaders in their respective categories.

Shopee has become one of the most popular e-commerce websites in Southeast Asia. IMAGE: Vecteezy

Shopee was recently noted as being the second-most downloaded shopping app around the world on both iOS and Android, while Garena's mobile battle royale was ranked as the most downloaded app on the Google Play Store in 2020 with now over one billion downloads.

Additionally, other Sea Limited offerings such as the SeaMoney mobile wallet has also seen massive growth in 2021, with US$4.1 billion in payments recorded during the second quarter of 2021.

In addition to its current portfolio, the company also aims to expand in the region's banking sector. In December 2020, Sea Limited successfully obtained a banking license in Singapore, while the establishment of a digital bank is on the cards following its acquisition of Indonesia's PT Bank Kesejahteraan Ekonomi (Bank BKE).

Overall, Sea Limited's swelling valuation isn't just exclusive to the Singaporean company. Looking up at the very top of the list will also reveal that other tech billionaires such as Jeff Bezos, Elon Musk, Bill Gates, and Mark Zuckerberg have all seen their fortunes swell during 2021.

Such a trend only illustrates the rise in demand for digital services everywhere on the planet, which has only been catalyzed by the ongoing pandemic.

IMAGE: TTG Asia

Sectors everywhere including shopping, healthcare, finance, entertainment, and education amongst others have seen a rapid shift towards the digital sphere, necessitated by social distancing measures imposed during 2020 and 2021.

Speaking on the growth of Sea Limited, Bloomberg Intelligence analyst Nathan Naidu said that people should only expect general digital adoption to keep pace with its current growth rate even should the world eventually recover from the pandemic, if it ever does.

"After COVID-19, people have warmed up to digital services and online platforms. I don't think they will completely give up the conveniences being offered," he said.

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