Adrian Cheng Chi-kong, the third-generation scion at the helm of one of Hong Kong’s largest conglomerates, will step down as the chief executive of New World Development and take on a non-executive role in the company, according to sources familiar with the matter.
Cheng, born in 1979, will become the non-executive vice-chairman of New World, giving up his title of chief executive officer, the sources say. The company’s Chief Operating Officer Eric Ma Siu-cheung, Hong Kong’s former Secretary for Development, is likely to be promoted to CEO when New World announces its full-year financial result on Thursday, the sources said.
New World is poised to report a loss of between HK$19 billion and HK$20 billion for the financial year that ended on June 30, its largest deficit since Cheng’s grandfather Cheng Yu-tung founded the company more than half a century ago, according to its profit warning last month.
More to follow …