Sir Michael Kadoorie chairs CLP Holdings, Hong Kong's largest electricity producer, and owns nearly half of the Peninsula Hotels group. His Baghdadi Jewish family has run both since the 1900s.
The Builders | Olam.business
Sir Michael Kadoorie, born in Hong Kong in 1941, chairs CLP Holdings, the electricity producer that supplies 75 percent of Hong Kong, and his family controls close to 60 percent of Hongkong and Shanghai Hotels, operator of the Peninsula Hotels. Baghdadi Jews who arrived in Hong Kong in the 1880s, the Kadoories have run both companies for more than a century. Forbes and Bloomberg have placed his personal fortune between 6 and 11 billion dollars in recent years.
Who Is Michael Kadoorie?
Michael Kadoorie is a Hong Kong businessman who chairs CLP Holdings and Hongkong and Shanghai Hotels, the two flagship companies of one of Asia's oldest Jewish business dynasties. He was knighted in 2005 for services to industry.
Who Owns the Peninsula Hotels?
The Kadoorie family owns the Peninsula Hotels through a controlling stake in The Hongkong and Shanghai Hotels, Limited (HSH), the Hong Kong Stock Exchange-listed company that has run the Peninsula chain since 1928. The family's collective holding sits just under 60 percent, held mainly through the Mikado Group and related family trusts, with Michael Kadoorie personally controlling roughly 47 percent of HSH shares.
The family's stake briefly climbed higher after a 2022 transaction. In January 2022, Michael Kadoorie agreed to pay HK$2.63 billion (about $337 million) to raise the family's combined shareholding from 59.98 percent to 72.43 percent, buying shares at HK$12.80 each, almost double the prior closing price, according to HSH's Hong Kong Stock Exchange filing reported by Forbes and Mingtiandi at the time. The remainder of HSH's shares are held by institutions, including Bermuda Trust Company and Sino Hotels, and by public shareholders on the Hong Kong exchange.
HSH does not own every Peninsula property outright. The group fully controls the hotels in Hong Kong, Tokyo, New York, Chicago and Bangkok, and holds partial ownership stakes in the Peninsula properties in Paris, Shanghai, Beijing and Manila, run through local joint ventures.
At a Glance
| Born | 1941, Hong Kong, into the Kadoorie family |
| Family origin | Baghdadi Jewish family; grandfather Sir Elly Kadoorie arrived in Hong Kong in the 1880s to work for the Sassoon family |
| CLP Holdings | Chairman. Family stake roughly 35 percent, held through Sir Elly Kadoorie and Sons Limited. Founded 1901. Supplies 75 percent of Hong Kong's electricity plus power assets in China, Australia and India |
| Hongkong and Shanghai Hotels | Chairman. Family stake just under 60 percent through the Mikado Group; Michael Kadoorie personally holds roughly 47 percent. Operates the Peninsula Hotels in Hong Kong, Tokyo, New York, Chicago, Bangkok, Paris, Shanghai, Beijing and Manila |
| Other holdings | Tai Ping Carpets, Metrojet Ltd and Heliservices, plus a stake in CK Hutchison alongside longtime ally Li Ka-Shing |
| Net worth | Estimated between 6 and 11 billion dollars across recent Forbes and Bloomberg rankings |
| Honors | Knight Bachelor, 2005, for services to industry. Officer of the Legion of Honour, France |
How Did the Kadoorie Family Build a Hong Kong Empire?
Sir Elly Kadoorie and his brother Ellis, Baghdad-born Jews, arrived in Hong Kong in the 1880s to work for the Sassoon family, another prominent Baghdadi Jewish trading house. The brothers set up their own brokerage, investing in hotels, banks and power generation. In 1901 the family helped found what became CLP Holdings, and in the 1890s they bought the company that would become Hongkong and Shanghai Hotels, merging it with a Shanghai hotel operation in 1922.
The family's fortunes were interrupted during the Second World War, when Japanese forces occupied Hong Kong and interned members of the Kadoorie family along with thousands of other foreign residents. Michael Kadoorie's father, Lawrence Kadoorie, returned to Hong Kong after the war and rebuilt CLP from the ground up with his brother Horace, expanding the utility through the postwar industrial boom that powered Hong Kong's textile, plastics and electronics sectors in successive decades.
Lawrence Kadoorie was knighted in 1974 and, in 1981, became Baron Kadoorie of Kowloon and the City of Westminster, the first Hong Kong-born person to sit in the British House of Lords. Michael Kadoorie took over the family's chairmanships on Lawrence's death and has continued buying back HSH shares, including the 337 million dollar purchase in 2022 described above.
What Does CLP Holdings Do Today?
CLP Holdings is the sole licensed electricity supplier for Kowloon and the New Territories, serving three-quarters of Hong Kong's population, and holds equity stakes in power plants across mainland China, Australia, India and Southeast Asia. CLP reported revenue of HK$90.96 billion and net profit of HK$11.74 billion for 2024, a 76 percent jump in profit driven largely by a turnaround at its wholly owned Australian subsidiary, EnergyAustralia, according to the company's 2024 annual results.
The company also runs the CLP Research Institute, focused on renewable energy development, reflecting Kadoorie's public role advocating for the region's energy transition. CLP has committed under its Climate Vision 2050 strategy to phase out coal-fired generation across its Hong Kong portfolio by 2040.
What Other Businesses Does the Kadoorie Family Control?
Beyond CLP and HSH, the Kadoorie family controls Tai Ping Carpets, a luxury carpet manufacturer, and the aviation services companies Metrojet Ltd and Heliservices (HK) Ltd. The family also holds a stake in CK Hutchison alongside longtime business ally Li Ka-Shing.
Michael Kadoorie chairs the Kadoorie Farm and Botanic Garden, a conservation and education institution in Hong Kong's New Territories founded by his father and uncle in 1956, now run day to day by his nephew Andrew Kadoorie. Through HSH, the family also owns Hong Kong's Peak Tram, the funicular railway that has run since 1888.
Frequently Asked Questions
Who is Michael Kadoorie?
Michael Kadoorie is a Hong Kong billionaire who chairs CLP Holdings, the territory's largest electricity producer, and Hongkong and Shanghai Hotels, operator of the Peninsula Hotels. He was knighted in 2005.
Who owns the Peninsula Hotels?
The Kadoorie family owns the Peninsula Hotels through The Hongkong and Shanghai Hotels, Limited, a Hong Kong-listed company in which the family holds just under 60 percent, mainly through the Mikado Group, with Michael Kadoorie personally controlling roughly 47 percent of shares.
What is the Kadoorie family's connection to Hong Kong's Jewish community?
The Kadoories are a Baghdadi Jewish family who arrived in Hong Kong in the 1880s working for the Sassoon trading house before building their own businesses in hotels, banking and electricity.
How much is Michael Kadoorie worth?
Forbes and Bloomberg estimates for Michael Kadoorie's net worth have ranged from approximately 6 billion to 11 billion dollars in recent years, derived mainly from his stakes in CLP Holdings and Hongkong and Shanghai Hotels.
What hotels does the Kadoorie family own?
Through Hongkong and Shanghai Hotels, the family fully or partly owns the Peninsula Hotels in Hong Kong, Tokyo, New York, Chicago, Bangkok, Paris, Shanghai, Beijing and Manila.
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מי הוא סר מייקל קדורי?
סר מייקל קדורי, יליד הונג קונג 1941, הוא יושב ראש CLP Holdings, ספקית החשמל הגדולה בהונג קונג, ומשפחתו שולטת בכמעט 60 אחוז מ-Hongkong and Shanghai Hotels, המפעילה את רשת מלונות פנינסולה. משפחתו, יהודים ילידי בגדד, מנהלת את שתי החברות מזה יותר ממאה שנה. הונו מוערך בין 6 ל-11 מיליארד דולר.
The Olam Editorial Team | The Builders / הבונים