A Hong Kong billionaire who manufactures iPhone screens has paid HK$2.8 billion (US$361 million) for a massive property on Victoria Peak, a mountainous hub for luxury real estate known locally as The Peak.
Yeung Kin-man and wife Lam Wai Ying, who own Biel Crystal Manufactory, which makes most of the screens for iPhones, bought the property at No. 1 & 3 Pollock’s Path on Thursday under a company called High Grand Development, according to Land Registry data culled by the South China Morning Post.
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Mr. Yeung, whose company also makes glass pieces for Samsung and Sony, is the eighth richest person in Hong Kong, according to Forbes latest list of wealthiest people.
The Chinese newspaper reported that Mr. Yeung will get a HK$721 million (US$93 million) refund on the stamp duty he paid on the property because he’s planning to redevelop it.
"The low-profile billionaire plans to build a big house for his family to live in," Raymond Lee, chief executive of Savills Greater China, who brokered the sale, told the South China Morning Post.
The white modernist building that stands on the property is now subdivided into eight luxury rental units, a large parking area and garden, according to property records with the Land Department.
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Apartments in the 51,000-square-foot building have rented for HK$140,000 (US$18,000) a month, according to previous listings with Knight Frank. The units boast high ceilings, fireplaces, an outdoor pool, a children’s play area, squash courts and gym.
Most of this, however, will likely go, as the new owners tear down the 1990 structure in favor of a new mansion.
Land rules dictate that Mr. Yeung can rebuild up to only 25,554 square feet, the newspaper reported.
An email sent to Biel requesting comment was not immediately returned.