--- title: "Singapore’s 2nd richest man Kwek Leng Beng’s cousin returns to CDL board 6 years after quitting over disagreements" type: "News" locale: "en" url: "https://longbridge.com/en/news/286999796.md" description: "Kwek Leng Peck, cousin of Singapore's second richest man, is rejoining City Developments Limited (CDL) as vice chairman after resigning in 2020 over disagreements on investments. His return comes amid a strategic review of the company, which has faced challenges, including a significant loss from a China investment. CDL's chairman welcomed his experience, while analysts suggest his appointment could enhance strategic oversight as the company navigates its future direction." datetime: "2026-05-20T03:37:20.000Z" locales: - [zh-CN](https://longbridge.com/zh-CN/news/286999796.md) - [en](https://longbridge.com/en/news/286999796.md) - [zh-HK](https://longbridge.com/zh-HK/news/286999796.md) --- # Singapore’s 2nd richest man Kwek Leng Beng’s cousin returns to CDL board 6 years after quitting over disagreements CDL announced in a Monday bourse filing that Leng Peck, 69, will officially return to the company as vice chairman and a non-independent non-executive director from June 1. The filing also said another director, Daniel Marie Ghislain Desbaillets, will resign from his role as non-executive director on May 31 to focus on his family business. Leng Peck brings decades of experience across property investment and development, hotel operations, manufacturing, trading, corporate finance and management, CDL said. "As a senior member of the Kwek family, he is deeply familiar with CDL’s heritage, values and vision, which have guided the company’s growth from a Singapore property developer to a global real estate group," it added. Kwek Leng Peck, executive chairman of Hong Leong Asia. Photo by Hong Leong Asia Leng Peck is the cousin of the company’s executive chairman, Leng Beng, and the uncle of its group CEO Sherman Kwek. He had previously been a CDL director for 33 years before stepping down as non-executive and non-independent director in October 2020, citing disagreements over the group’s investment in Sincere Property Group in China and the management of key hotel unit Millennium & Copthorne Hotels, _The Business Times_ reported. CDL later wrote off its investment in Sincere, resulting in a S$1.9 billion (US$1.5 billion) loss in 2020, its first in almost 50 years. In the filing, Leng Beng welcomed Leng Peck’s return, saying his experience, perspectives and networks will support effective stewardship while his insights will be invaluable to CDL’s ongoing strategic review exercise. The chairman also said the company plans to announce the outcomes of the review by the third quarter of this year, later than the mid-2026 timeline previously announced by Sherman. Leng Peck’s return and the latest boardroom changes could renew concerns over CDL’s long-term direction and stability despite a truce between Leng Beng and Sherman following their high-profile feud last year, according to _Bloomberg_. The dispute started in February 2025 with a lawsuit filed by Leng Beng against his son, alleging an "attempted coup" to consolidate control of the board. The suit led to a public spat between father and son and sparked concerns over the company’s direction before the case was dropped weeks later. The issues that Leng Peck cited when resigning in 2020 featured prominently in the feud. At the time, Leng Beng pushed for Sherman’s removal as group CEO, citing the latter’s past business decisions that had "put CDL in a precarious position," including the Sincere investment. Sherman, meanwhile, blamed Catherine Wu, a long-time adviser to his father and an unpaid independent adviser to the M&C board, whom he alleged had interfered in matters beyond her role. Desbaillets was among several directors named in the lawsuit. Last month, he and two other directors linked to the dispute also stepped down from the hotel unit’s board. Tabitha Foo, an analyst at DBS Group Research, says Leng Peck's appointment comes at "a pivotal juncture" as CDL carries out a strategic business review amid growing investor focus on capital allocation, portfolio optimization and shareholder returns. Leng Peck currently serves in several positions within the Kwek family’s Hong Leong Group Singapore, including executive chairman of Hong Leong Asia and executive director of Hong Leong Investment Holdings, Hong Leong Corporation Holdings and Hong Realty (Private) Limited. "Given his more than four decades of experience across the Hong Leong Group, we believe Mr Kwek’s appointment could provide additional strategic depth and operational oversight as CDL evaluates its longer-term growth trajectory and value-unlocking initiatives," Foo says, as quoted by _The Edge Singapore_. _Forbes_ last September ranked Leng Beng and his family as Singapore's second-richest, with their combined net worth estimated at US$14.3 billion. 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