Hong Kong ‘shop king’ Tang Shing-bor reaches settlement on unpaid rent of US$1.5 million for hotel property

The four owners of the property at 182 Nathan Road had filed a writ in the High Court seeking unpaid arrears over 10 months

Stan Group, the family office representing Tang’s assets, says its business as usual and that it constantly reviews its HK$80 billion portfolio

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The owners of the building, which has been converted into Minimal Hotel Avenue, in Tsim Sha Tsui, sued to recover 10 months of unpaid rent. Photo: Handout

Published: 8:30am, 1 Sep 2020Updated: 7:14pm, 1 Sep 2020

Billionaire Tang Shing-bor, Hong Kong’s “shop king”, has swiftly settled a court case brought against him over unpaid rent of nearly HK$12 million (US$1.5 million) for a hotel property in Tsim Sha Tsui.

The settlement comes amid market speculation that the tycoon is under financial stress after the Tang family has divested more than HK$1 billion worth of property assets so far this year.

In its first public response to the legal action, the spokesman of Stan Group, the family office representing Tang’s assets, said in a written reply to the South China Morning Post that “the court case about the property at 182 Nathan Road has been withdrawn by the owner.”

To quash market rumours about its financial health, Stan Group said “operating income of our operation businesses, including hotel management, only accounts for a small proportion of the group’s revenue, so the Covid -19 has not imposed a significant impact on our income”.

Tang Shing-bor, also known as Hong Kong’s ‘shop king’. Photo: SCMP

The company said that as part of its strategy it constantly reviews its HK$80 billion asset portfolio and sells noncore assets at favourable prices.