Malaysian Families Quietly Dominating the American Economy
•By Mahersaham Team
Artikel ini juga tersedia dalam Bahasa Melayu
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When we think of the tycoons who own America, names like Rockefeller, Walton, or Silicon Valley tech moguls come to mind. But behind the neon lights of the Las Vegas Strip, the skylines of New York City, and the gated estates of Beverly Hills lies a different kind of financial power that rarely gets discussed - Malaysian money.
From billion-dollar casinos to the highest-paid CEO office in Silicon Valley, Malaysian families have quietly bought their way into the heart of the world's largest economy. They are not mere foreign investors - they are part of the engine that runs America.
This article explores 10 Malaysian families and individuals with extraordinary influence in the United States, based on analysis by Global Status along with additional research on their investments, asset ownership, and corporate presence.
If you drive down the Las Vegas Strip today, you will see a massive curving red building dominating the skyline - Resorts World Las Vegas. Its construction cost? USD4.3 billion, making it the most expensive resort ever built on the Strip at the time of its opening.
And it is 100% owned by a Malaysian family - the Lim family, founders of the Genting Group.
The original founder, Tan Sri Lim Goh Tong, transformed a jungle mountaintop in Malaysia into one of the world's most profitable casinos. His son, Tan Sri Lim Kok Thay, inherited that ambition and aimed it at the United States. They purchased the former Stardust Casino site when it was nothing but empty land and a failed dream, held it through the recession, and then poured billions into construction.
The Lim family also owns Resorts World New York City in Queens, one of the highest-grossing slot parlors in the world. They are currently bidding to turn it into a full-scale casino - a project that could cost another USD5 billion. They also hold prime waterfront land in Miami.
The audacity of this family cannot be overstated. For decades, Las Vegas was a closed shop ruled by American corporations like MGM and Caesars. The Lim family spent years trying to break in, and they succeeded. Notably, in March 2025, Genting appointed its first CEO from outside the founding family, marking a new era for the empire.
The Quek family, led by Tan Sri Quek Leng Chan of the Hong Leong Group, are the landlords of the American traveller. Through their subsidiary, Millennium & Copthorne Hotels, the family owns a property portfolio spread across the American map.
Notable holdings include:
The Quek family's strategy is "buy and hold" - they are not quick-flip property traders. They use massive cash reserves from their Malaysian banking operations to acquire undervalued assets in global capitals. They understand that a hotel in Times Square is not really about room service - it is about owning a piece of the most valuable pavement on earth.
With a net worth of USD7.6 billion, Quek Leng Chan ranks as the second wealthiest person in Malaysia in 2026.
Amid all these old-money dynasties, there is one individual who may be the single most powerful Malaysian in America today - Hock Tan, CEO of Broadcom.
Born in Penang, Malaysia, Hock Tan won a scholarship to MIT and later earned an MBA from Harvard. He did not just build a company - he bought the competition. Under his leadership, Broadcom has executed massive acquisitions, including the USD61 billion purchase of VMware.
His pay? In 2025, Hock Tan's compensation package reached USD205.3 million, mostly from stock awards, making him among the highest-paid CEOs in America.
Broadcom is headquartered in San Jose, and Hock Tan sits at the absolute cockpit of American technology. His company produces the semiconductor chips that power the device you are using right now. He proves that you do not need to inherit a palm oil plantation to rule America - you just need to know how to acquire software companies.
Tan Sri Robert Kuok is the grand patriarch of Southeast Asian wealth. At 102 years old, he remains the richest person in Malaysia with a net worth of USD14.2 billion in 2026.
Known as the "Sugar King of Asia" for once controlling 10% of the world's sugar trade, the Kuok family's influence in America is a study in high-end diplomacy and logistics.
The family controls the Shangri-La hotel chain - the gold standard of Asian luxury in the West. For decades, when an American president or CEO visited Asia, they stayed at a Kuok property. This created a network of influence that few other families possess.
Through Wilmar International, the world's largest palm oil trader, the Kuok family is deeply embedded in the agricultural trades connecting the American heartland to Asian markets. They buy American soybeans. They ship American goods. They are the arteries of Trans-Pacific trade.
The real power of the Kuok family is reputation. In a world of new money and flash, the name Kuok opens doors at Wall Street banks that remain closed to others.
Two major Malaysian names share a fascinating connection - both are co-owners of the Los Angeles Football Club (LAFC), one of the most valuable franchises in Major League Soccer history.
Datuk Ruben Gnanalingam, son of Tan Sri G. Gnanalingam who controls Westports (one of the busiest ports in Southeast Asia), is a founder and board member of LAFC. Every time an American consumer buys furniture, electronics, or garments made in Southeast Asia, there is a high probability it passed through a Gnanalingam asset.
Ruben is also a co-owner of Queens Park Rangers (QPR) in the UK, creating a transatlantic sports portfolio that places him in the same room as American private equity giants.
Tan Sri Vincent Tan, founder of Berjaya Corporation, was one of the original owners of LAFC alongside Gnanalingam. But the difference between Tan and Gnanalingam is the exit strategy.
In 2020, Vincent Tan sold half of his stake in LAFC. The deal valued the club at USD700 million - the highest valuation for an MLS club at the time. He turned a speculative investment into a massive cash windfall.
This is the hallmark of the Tan family - they are traders at heart. They do not fall in love with their American assets, they profit from them.
While other families buy hotels or casinos, Tan Sri Jeffrey Cheah, founder of Sunway Group, bought something far more enduring - prestige at the world's top universities.
The Jeffrey Cheah Foundation has established major partnerships with Harvard University, including the Jeffrey Cheah Professorship of Southeast Asia Studies and Jeffrey Cheah Travel Grants. The foundation has donated millions to Harvard, creating a permanent bridge between their Malaysian empire and the American intellectual elite.
Why does this matter? Because in the rarefied air of the ultra-elite, access is the currency. The Cheah family does not need to own a factory in Ohio to have influence. They have a direct line to the institutions that shape American policy and economics. When you endow a chair at Harvard, your name is spoken in corridors where future presidents are trained.
In 2025, the Jeffrey Cheah Foundation announced a commitment of RM500 million to create one of the largest education endowments in Malaysia, modelled after legacy institutions like Harvard.
The Tiah family, led by Tan Sri Tony Tiah and his son Joo Kim Tiah, built their initial fortune in Malaysian stockbroking through TA Enterprise. Their North American expansion came through their property arm, TA Global.
Their crown jewel? The Trump International Hotel and Tower in Vancouver. While geographically located in Canada, this asset placed them directly in the orbit of the US presidency and the American media cycle.
By choosing the Trump brand, they did not just buy a licensing deal - they bought global attention. However, what was once a marketing coup turned into a PR minefield as politics shifted in Washington.
Dato Sri Tony Fernandes is known as the man who democratised air travel in Asia through AirAsia. But his connection to America is deep and structural. Before selling cheap flights, Fernandes was an executive at Warner Music.
Fernandes understands that in America, perception is reality. He is one of the few Malaysian billionaires who can walk into any boardroom in New York or Los Angeles and be recognised not just as money, but as a brand. He represents the modern face of Malaysian wealth in America - charismatic, English-speaking, and media-savvy.
If Hock Tan is the public face of Malaysian power in America, Ananda Krishnan was the ghost who quietly owned everything.
Known as AK, this telecom and media tycoon was one of the most reclusive billionaires in the world. A Harvard Business School graduate who made his first millions as an oil trader, Ananda Krishnan understood that true power is invisible. He used a complex web of offshore trusts and holding companies to keep his assets strictly private.
His US connections ran through luxury real estate and entertainment, including ownership of residential properties in exclusive American neighbourhoods and quiet funding of Hollywood ventures through his media empire, Astro.
Important note: Ananda Krishnan passed away in November 2024 at the age of 86. At the time of his death, he was ranked the 6th wealthiest person in Malaysia with a net worth of USD5.1 billion. His legacy in America endures through the assets and investments he left behind.
Several interesting patterns emerge when we analyse these families:
What is clear is this: Malaysian wealth in America is not about showing off. It is about strategy, patience, and a deep understanding that America is not just a market - it is the world's stage.
The Lim family of Genting Group is considered the most influential Malaysian family in America, owning Resorts World Las Vegas worth USD4.3 billion and Resorts World New York City.
Yes, Hock Tan was born in Penang, Malaysia. He is the CEO of Broadcom and among the highest-paid CEOs in America with a compensation package exceeding USD205 million in 2025.
The Quek family through Hong Leong Group owns the Millennium Broadway in Times Square, New York City. They also own the Millennium Biltmore in Los Angeles.
Yes. Ruben Gnanalingam and Vincent Tan are among the founding owners of Los Angeles Football Club (LAFC) in Major League Soccer. Vincent Tan sold half his stake in 2020 at a club valuation of USD700 million.
Tan Sri Robert Kuok remains the richest person in Malaysia in 2026 with a net worth of USD14.2 billion according to Forbes, ranking him 204th in the world.
Malaysian families invest in America for several reasons: asset diversification, access to the world's largest market, global legitimacy through trophy property ownership, and building networks of influence among the world's business and political elite.
The Tiah family through TA Global developed the Trump International Hotel and Tower in Vancouver. Joo Kim Tiah, son of Tony Tiah, chose the Trump brand partly due to a personal connection with Donald Trump Jr.
Robert Kuok is 102 years old in 2026. He was born on 6 October 1923 and remains active in managing his business empire.
These Malaysian families prove that real wealth is not about media presence - it is about strategy, patience, and the courage to bet big when others are afraid to move. From billion-dollar Las Vegas casinos to endowed chairs at Harvard, Malaysian money flows through the arteries of the American economy without most people realising it.
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