Huang Chongshan
Keeree Kanjanapas (born 1950), of Teochew ancestry, is a Thai businessman and son of Wong Chue Meng. He was formerly the chairman of Seiko Sports Association and team manager of the Hong Kong national football team, and is currently the controlling shareholder of the Bangkok Mass Transit System and Chairman of BTS Group Holdings.
Biography
Early life
Keeree Kanjanapas was born in Bangkok's Chinatown in 1950 and attended primary school there. In his youth, he was known for being combative and was sent to Hong Kong to attend Pui Kiu Middle School at the age of 13 after he hit a teacher. He subsequently lived in Hong Kong for 35 years.[1] He dropped out of school due to the 1967 Hong Kong riots and joined the family business Po Kwong Industrial as a warehouse supervisor, later promoted to head of procurement.
Seiko Sports Association
In the 1970s, Keeree and his elder brother Wong Chong Po co-founded the Seiko Sports Association in Hong Kong. He served as chairman from 1974 and recruited Wu Kwok Hung with an annual salary of HKD 40,000.[2] The team won many titles in the Hong Kong First Division League until its withdrawal in 1986. He, Lam Kin Ngok (South China), and Yu Kam Kee (Yuen Long) were dubbed the "Three Fats" of Hong Kong football. Seiko and Bulova (run by Wong Chong Po) often clashed in high-profile matches. However, under the leadership of politically aligned businessman Henry Fok, the Hong Kong Football Association restricted foreign players, leading to the sport’s decline and the dissolution of both teams.[3] Before dissolving, Keeree submitted a reform proposal suggesting the establishment of a Hong Kong Super League,[4] and organized a farewell match at the Hong Kong Stadium for four-time Hong Kong Footballer of the Year Wu Kwok Hung.[5]
1990s Financial Crisis
In 1983, Keeree founded Hua Kee Thai Group with HKD 10 million from his father and became the PUMA brand agent. He also set up his own factory for apparel production. He later opened Tien Tien Hotpot and Tien Tien Seafood Restaurant. The company went public in 1989. In 1988, he began developing Thana City, a golf-centric real estate project near Suvarnabhumi Airport.
In 1994, Forbes estimated the family’s wealth at USD 3.5 billion—USD 200 million more than Li Ka-shing at the time. But the 1997 Asian financial crisis devastated the business. Hua Kee Thai lost the PUMA agency and closed its restaurants. Keeree claimed, "I didn’t owe anyone. I was a guarantor." He sold the company for HKD 1 and exited the Hong Kong market, returning to Bangkok to invest in the mass transit system in partnership with Cheng Yu Tung of New World Development.
SFC Prosecution
On 24 February 1999, Hong Kong’s SFC prosecuted Keeree and Dumbo Company Limited for six failures to disclose sales of 218,467,548 shares of Hua Kee Thai, and three failures for 111,778,000 shares by Dumbo. Magistrate Luk Hing Fook fined them HKD 18,000 and ordered them to pay investigation costs of HKD 8,900. Later, the Listing Committee publicly reprimanded him for violating the Directors' Undertaking.
In July 2009, Keeree sold a 8,700 sq ft plot in Yau Yat Tsuen for HKD 116 million.
In June 2010, Seiko '82 fan club celebrated its 30th anniversary with a 50-table banquet at Kowloon Bay International Trade & Exhibition Centre. Keeree and Wu Kwok Hung attended.
Bangkok Mass Transit System
After returning to Thailand, Keeree established a company to build the Bangkok Mass Transit System. Inspired by Hong Kong’s MTR model of rail-and-property synergy, he partnered with Sansiri Group, co-founded by future Thai PM Srettha Thavisin. In 2012, Forbes ranked him 19th richest in Thailand with a net worth of HKD 6.3 billion. In March 2013, BTS sought to IPO its commercial trust arm to raise THB 62.5 billion (USD 2.1 billion), which would be Thailand’s largest IPO to date.
Personal Life
Keeree has one son and one daughter. His eldest son Gavin Kanjanapas (Thai: กวิน กาญจนพาสน์) was born and raised in Hong Kong and studied in the UK. He returned to Thailand in 1997 due to the financial crisis.[1] In October 2004, Gavin married Tse Wing Yin in Bangkok. Keeree hosted a grand wedding banquet with over 1,500 guests including Peter Lam, Lam Kin Ngok, Cissy Wang, Alan Tam, and others. In 2015, Gavin became CEO of BTS Group.
His daughter Susanna Kanjanapas (Thai: ซูซาน กาญจนพาสน์) married lawyer Man Ka Ho at Kowloon City Baptist Church on 26 March 2005. The banquet was held at InterContinental Hong Kong. A second banquet followed in Thailand.
Keeree’s brothers Wong Chong Po and Wong Chong Tsang hold senior positions at listed company Stelux Holdings.[3]
Keeree was a disciple of the late White Dragon King. He was the first to introduce the master to Hong Kong’s elite, including Alan Tam, Nat Chan, Eric Tsang, and Michael Miu. In 1985, White Dragon King blessed the opening of his restaurant.
He was once a horse owner in the Hong Kong Jockey Club, owning a retired horse named "Bobo Boy".
References
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 https://e123.hk/zh-hant/news/430859
- ↑ https://zh.wikipedia.org/wiki/%E9%BB%83%E5%89%B5%E5%B1%B1#cite_ref-HKDailyNews_5-0
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 http://www.mpfinance.com/htm/finance/20130319/columnist/ekz_ekzb1.htm
- ↑ https://zh.wikipedia.org/wiki/%E9%BB%83%E5%89%B5%E5%B1%B1#cite_ref-10
- ↑ https://zh.wikipedia.org/wiki/%E9%BB%83%E5%89%B5%E5%B1%B1#cite_ref-8