The scale of their wealth
Health
The price of life
Let's compare Tung Chee Hwa's fortune with the healthcare spending of a massive country
Tung Chee Hwa could fund the entire healthcare system of DR Congo, with a population of over 105,800,000 people, for approximately 1.4 years.
But even if we compare their fortune with that of a rich country
On the other end, Tung Chee Hwa could cover the healthcare spending of Luxembourg, considered the most heavily funded healthcare system in the world, for 0.6 years.
Education
Buying the future
Let's also compare their fortune with education spending, first with a poor country
Tung Chee Hwa could cover the total cost of Nigeria's education system, the most populous country in Africa with over 243,000,000 inhabitants, for 0.9 years.
And yes, we can also compare it with a rich country
But they couldn't just cover the cost of a poor country; Luxembourg is considered the country with the highest per capita investment in education in the world, and Tung Chee Hwa could pay for it entirely for 1.3 years.
Research
The monopoly on progress
Coming full circle, we think it's also interesting to add another gigantic country
Tung Chee Hwa could fully fund the state research budget of Pakistan, the fifth most populous country in the world with over 260,000,000 inhabitants, for 5.4 years.
And of course, the country that invests the most per capita worldwide
But even if we compare the total wealth of Tung Chee Hwa with Israel, the country that invests the most per capita in research in the world, they could cover the total cost of the system for 0.1 years.
Gold
Everyday luxuries
Tung Chee Hwa's fortune is equivalent to 22 tons of gold. It's hard to process, since we don't usually keep a handful of gold bars in our piggy banks.
A standard gold ring usually weighs between 4 and 7 grams. Let's say this one weighs 5 grams. It's usually 18 karats.
Based on today's gold price (excluding the jeweler's commission, shipping, or anything else), that ring would be worth $546.86.
Tung Chee Hwa could buy 5,812,744 gold rings. That's a lot of fingers and way too many gifts!!
And if you're struggling to visualize that many rings, it would take 1 trucks to transport them. Although Tung Chee Hwa will almost certainly have enough money left over to pay for the gas.
Biography
Tung Chee Hwa is the eldest son of shipping magnate Tung Chao Yung, who founded what became one of Hong Kong's largest shipping companies.
After running Orient Overseas for 14 years, Chee Hwa handed over the reins to younger brother Chee Chen in order to serve as Hong Kong's first chief executive.
In 2018 the two brothers sold their entire 68.7% stake to China shipping giant COSCO, pocketing $4.3 billion.
His two sons, Alan and Andrew, were both executives at Orient Overseas.
Financial Assets
Financial assets information not available.
Monthly wealth history
Fortune comparison
Historical data not available for comparison