Ronnie Chan Chi-chung (; born 1949) is a Hong Kong businessman.

Education

Chan earned bachelor's and master's degrees in biology from

California State University, Los Angeles California State University, Los Angeles (Cal State LA) is a public research university in Los Angeles, California, United States. It is part of the California State University system. Cal State LA offers 142 bachelor's degree programs, 122 m ...

. He received an MBA from the

University of Southern California The University of Southern California (USC, SC, or Southern Cal) is a Private university, private research university in Los Angeles, California, United States. Founded in 1880 by Robert M. Widney, it is the oldest private research university in ...

in 1976. Chan was given honorary doctorates by

Tel Aviv University Tel Aviv University (TAU) is a Public university, public research university in Tel Aviv, Israel. With over 30,000 students, it is the largest university in the country. Located in northwest Tel Aviv, the university is the center of teaching and ...

, the

Hong Kong University of Science and Technology The Hong Kong University of Science and Technology (HKUST) is a public research university in Sai Kung District, New Territories, Hong Kong. Founded in 1991, it was the territory's third institution to be granted university status, and the firs ...

and the

Chinese University of Hong Kong The Chinese University of Hong Kong (CUHK) is a public university, public research university in Sha Tin, New Territories, Hong Kong. Established in 1963 as a federation of three university college, collegesChung Chi College, New Asia Coll ...

Career

In 1991, he became the chairman of Hang Lung Group and its subsidiary Hang Lung Properties. As of 2014, it was one of the largest

real estate developer Real estate development, or property development, is a business process, encompassing activities that range from the renovation and re-lease of existing buildings to the purchase of raw land and the sale of developed land or parcels to other ...

s in Hong Kong. He succeeded the chairman position in the companies from his uncle. He is also the vice-president of the Real Estate Developers Association of Hong Kong, a co-chairman of the

Asia Society The Asia Society is a 501(c)(3) organization that focuses on educating the world about Asia. It has several centers in the United States (Manhattan, Washington, D.C., Houston, Los Angeles, San Francisco and Seattle) and around the world (Hong Ko ...

and chairman of its Hong Kong Center, and an advisor to the China Development Research Foundation of the State Council of the People's Republic of China. He has served on the governing or advisory bodies of several think-tanks and universities, including China Foreign Affairs University, the

and his alma mater, the

. He was a director of

Enron Corporation Enron Corporation was an American energy, commodities, and services company based in Houston, Texas. It was led by Kenneth Lay and developed in 1985 via a merger between Houston Natural Gas and InterNorth, both relatively small regional compa ...

and a member of its audit committee when it filed for bankruptcy as a result of fraud. In November 2009, he attended the Horasis Global China Business Meeting in Lisbon, where his criticisms of American financial policy garnered widespread attention.

Political views

Through his companies' multiple votes on Hong Kong's democratic '

Election Committee The Election Committee is the electoral college in Hong Kong that selects the Chief Executive (CE) and, since 2021, elects 40 of the 90 members of the Legislative Council. Established by Annex I of the Basic Law of Hong Kong which states ...

', Chan supported

Carrie Lam Carrie Lam Cheng Yuet-ngor ( Cheng; ; born 13 May 1957) is a retired Hong Kong politician who served as the fourth Chief Executive of Hong Kong from 2017 to 2022, after serving as Chief Secretary for Administration for five years. After g ...

for the role of

Chief Executive A chief executive officer (CEO), also known as a chief executive or managing director, is the top-ranking corporate officer charged with the management of an organization, usually a company or a nonprofit organization. CEOs find roles in variou ...

. But in 2019, during the massive protests that rocked the territory, he opined that having a civil servant in the role was the “most ridiculous thing” and that Lam's "unwise policies" had contributed to the unrest, which he emphasised was caused by political, not social, issues. He also supported

Leung Chun-ying Leung Chun-ying ( zh, t=梁振英; born 12 August 1954), also known as CY Leung, is a Hong Kong politician and chartered surveyor who has served as vice-chairman of the National Committee of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Confe ...

in the 2013 election for chief executive.Property developer Ronnie Chan says Hong Kong needs a ‘strong, political leader’ to handle protest crisis and putting civil servants in charge is ‘the most ridiculous’ idea
, SCMP, 8 Oct 2019 He has stated that Hongkongers' "DNA is different from the mainlanders’ because many escaped from there" and blamed a lack of national identity for the protests.

Philanthropy

In 1996, Chan began providing yearly financial assistance to needy students at top universities in China. In September 2014, Chan's family, through their Morningside Foundation, donated US$350 million and US$20 million to

Harvard University Harvard University is a Private university, private Ivy League research university in Cambridge, Massachusetts, United States. Founded in 1636 and named for its first benefactor, the History of the Puritans in North America, Puritan clergyma ...

and the

, resulting in the naming of the

Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health The Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health is the public health school at Harvard University, located in the Longwood Medical Area of Boston, Massachusetts. It was named after Hong Kong entrepreneur Chan Tseng-hsi in 2014 following a US$350 ...

and Mrs. T.H. Chan Division of Occupational Science and Occupational Therapy, respectively.Tsang, Denise. ''Ronnie Chan: philanthropist taking charity through the roof''. 22 September 2014. Raymond, Jessica. ''Chan family gift creates first named, endowed occupational therapy program in nation''. 17 September 2014. In 2021, a US$175 million gift was bestowed by Morningside on the

University of Massachusetts Medical School The UMass Chan Medical School is a public medical school in Worcester, Massachusetts. It is part of the University of Massachusetts system. It consists of three schools: the T.H. Chan School of Medicine, the Morningside Graduate School of Biom ...

Worcester Worcester may refer to: Places United Kingdom * Worcester, England, a city and the county town of Worcestershire in England ** Worcester (UK Parliament constituency), an area represented by a Member of Parliament * Worcester Park, London, Engl ...

, which was subsequently renamed UMass Chan Medical School. The constituent schools were likewise renamed to the T.H. Chan School of Medicine, the Tan Chingfen Graduate School of Nursing, and the Morningside Graduate School of Biomedical Sciences.

Personal life

Chan's brother Gerald Chan is also a director of Hang Lung Group. Chan is married to Barbara Chan and has two sons. In 2004, Chan's son Adriel Chan received his bachelor's degree in international relations from USC. Chan's other son Adley Chan earned his bachelor's degree in sociology, as well as bachelor's, master's and doctorate degrees in occupational therapy from USC.

References

External links

Chairman of Hang Lung Group Limited

Committee of 100 Member Roster
* {{DEFAULTSORT:Chan, Ronnie 1949 births Living people Hong Kong businesspeople Hong Kong chief executives Marshall School of Business alumni Hang Lung Group Members of the Committee of 100 Enron people Hong Kong chairpersons of corporations Hong Kong corporate directors Members of the Election Committee of Hong Kong, 2007–2012 Members of the Election Committee of Hong Kong, 2012–2017 Alumni of St. Paul's Co-educational College Recipients of the Grand Bauhinia Medal Peterson Institute for International Economics