Stanley Ho has 6 sons, why did he choose his daughter Pansy Ho to succeed instead of choosing his son to take over?

Have you ever doubted why the gambling king Stanley Ho chose his daughter Pansy Ho to succeed instead of choosing his own son to succeed?

Gambling king Stanley Ho died of illness in 2020, and on the day of his death, it was not his son who spoke in front of the media on behalf of the He family, but his daughter Pansy Ho.

The Chinese are most particular about passing on their children rather than their daughters, especially among wealthy families. Most Chinese think that fertilizer water does not flow into the fields of outsiders. So why did Stanley Ho do the opposite, and why did he hand over the business to his daughter Pansy Ho?

Actually, it's not that simple.

Stanley Ho had 4 wives in his life and a total of 17 children, including 11 daughters and 6 sons. Because of the big family business, the situation of Stanley Ho's family is also very complicated.

In 2010, because Stanley Ho was particularly seriously ill, there was a family infighting, which was full of turmoil in the city and almost went to court.

Stanley Ho suffered from a long-term mobility disability due to an accidental fall in 2009, and due to his advanced age, in fact, his succession has already been secretly arranged.

Stanley Ho's business is mainly based on four listed companies, SJM, Shun Tak Group, Melco International and MGM Macau. Among the four companies, Melco International is managed by Ho Youlong, who is the second room, and MGM MACAU is founded by Pansy Ho.

SJM is the most complicated company, because the people in the second, third, and fourth rooms are involved in the management of it. Shun Tak Group is a non-gaming business that runs the He family, and it has been managed by people in the second room for a long time.

According to outsiders' thoughts, Stanley Ho has 6 sons, and he must have chosen one of them to be his successor to manage such a huge business.

But Stanley Ho didn't do that. Because he also has hardships, although he has 6 sons, the eldest son He Youguang died in an accident in 1981. When the eldest son died, Stanley Ho was left with his youngest son, He Youlong, who was only 4 years old.

Stanley Ho later married his third wife, Chan Wanzhen, and his fourth wife, Angel Leung, and after they started, Stanley Ho gave birth to 8 children, including 4 sons.

However, He Youbang, the son of the fourth wife Liang Anqi, has been in poor health since he was a child, and it is impossible for him to become a successor. So after calculating the fact that Stanley Ho can really take over, there are only 4 sons left.

However, among these four sons, except for He Youlong, who is older and has enough business experience, the other three sons are only in their twenties and thirties, even if they have good potential, it is difficult to take on important responsibilities. In this way, the one who really has a chance to succeed is He Youlong in the second room.

In terms of ability, he is also sufficient. Ho started his own business early on, and later founded Melco International in Macau, one of the city's six largest gaming companies. Over the years, he has also demonstrated his ability to manage Melco International on his own. At the same time, he is low-key and quite a general. At its peak, Melco International's annual profits were in the billions.

Since He Youlong has enough ability, why didn't Stanley Ho choose him to succeed him? In Stanley Ho's arrangement, SJM was handed over to He Chaofeng, who was in the second room, and Liang Anqi, who was in the fourth room, to manage together. Pansy Ho is responsible for managing her MGM Macau and Shun Tak Group, while Ho Youlong is independent of the family and develops Melco International.

The family's external affairs are in charge of Pansy Ho. In fact, Stanley Ho's succession arrangement is very clever, and He Youlong went to develop his own business instead of participating in SJM, which is actually a better thing for He Youlong. After all, the relationship in SJM is too complicated, and if He Youlong participates in it, it will continue to be internally consumed.

This arrangement is actually the same as Li Ka-shing letting Li Zekai start his own business. He Chaoqiong has no children, and her position will have to be handed over sooner or later, and it is estimated that the most suitable person to take over will be He Youlong. Therefore, Stanley Ho's succession arrangement is actually well-intentioned. Let He Chaoqiong, He Chaofeng and other daughters also get the opportunity to play, and let his son He Youlong have room for development.

Now that He Chaoqiong has taken over, she has also demonstrated her ability, and in recent years, the He family has changed the past situation and has become very united, and people from their family can often be seen attending various activities together. The contradictions that arose before because of the separation of the family have also been resolved.

This is also very rare. Perhaps in Stanley Ho's heart, if all the children are developing in the family company, if something happens in the future, then the He family's business will have problems. He Youlong went outside to develop by himself, which actually gave the He family a risk of differentiation.

The same is true of Li Ka-shing's separation arrangement, Li Zeju keeps his business, and Li Zekai starts a business. If there is a problem with the family business, then there is Li Zekai. If Li Zekai's entrepreneurship is not successful, then Li Zeju can still guard the family business. This is actually the reason why you should not put your eggs in one basket. In addition, Guo Desheng asked his three sons to take over Sun Hung Kai together, which eventually caused the three brothers to kill each other, which is also a lesson in blood.