Sze Man Bok Dead at 78: Billionaire Hengan International Founder Dies as Consumer Giant Bets on AI

Billionaire industrialist and consumer goods pioneer Sze Man Bok, who transformed personal hygiene manufacturing across Asia, has died at the age of 78. As the visionary co-founder and long-time executive chairman of Hengan International Group, Sze turned a modest regional operation into an international empire worth tens of billions of Hong Kong dollars, creating iconic household staples including Hearttex tissue paper and Space 7 feminine care products.

The Rise of Sze Man Bok: Building an Asian Consumer Titan

Born in mainland China before establishing deep business roots in Hong Kong and Fujian province, Sze Man Bok co-founded Hengan International in 1985 alongside his long-time business partner, Chief Executive Officer Hui Lin Chit. In an era when disposable personal hygiene products were considered luxury items across much of the region, Sze spotted an untapped market of hundreds of millions of consumers seeking affordable, reliable daily goods.

Under Sze’s aggressive commercial strategy, Hengan rolled out China’s earliest domestic lines of sanitary napkins and diapers. In 1998, Hengan became one of the most celebrated early private manufacturing enterprises to list on the Hong Kong Stock Exchange (HKEX: 1044). Over the next three decades, the company’s valuation skyrocketed, earning blue-chip constituent status on the Hang Seng Index and turning both co-founders into fixtures on international billionaire rich lists.

Inside Sze Man Bok Net Worth and Vast Holdings

Throughout his career, Sze Man Bok maintained substantial equity stakes across personal care, real estate, and strategic private ventures. At his peak, financial trackers such as Forbes and Bloomberg estimated Sze’s personal fortune at roughly $2.8 billion, solidifying his standing among the wealthiest self-made magnates in Hong Kong and Fujian.

His wealth was largely anchored in Hengan International’s diversified portfolio, which includes:

• Tissue Products Division: Powerhouse consumer brand Hearttex, commanding market-leading volume in paper towels, napkins, and facial tissues.
• Sanitary Napkins: The high-margin Space 7 division, dominating urban retail channels across Greater China.
• Disposable Diapers: Comprehensive infant care under Anerle and adult incontinence products under ElderJoy.
• Venture & Asset Management: Extensive family offices investing in commercial properties across Xiamen, Hong Kong, and Southeast Asian distribution hubs.

Hengan’s Strategic Shift: AI Automation and Overseas Expansion

Sze’s passing marks the end of an era, coinciding with Hengan International’s comprehensive modern transformation. To combat intense price competition from domestic e-commerce rivals and raw material fluctuations, the industrial giant has been aggressively investing in artificial intelligence supply chain forecasting, fully automated smart factories, and direct-to-consumer digital channels.

Beyond digital automation, the group has accelerated its footprint in Southeast Asia, the Middle East, and Latin America. Having already acquired major stakes in regional paper producers across Malaysia and surrounding territories, Hengan is pivoting toward emerging economies to replicate the multi-decade consumer growth that first launched Sze into the global financial elite.

Tributes Pour in for an Industrial Pioneer

Colleagues, industry competitors, and institutional investors have expressed deep condolences following the announcement of Sze’s death. Business leaders hailed him as a relentless pioneer whose operational discipline helped define modern Chinese manufacturing quality standards.

“Mr. Sze Man Bok was not only a daring entrepreneur who revolutionized daily life for hundreds of millions of families, but also a dedicated philanthropist and community leader,” corporate executives shared in internal communications. He is survived by his children and extended family, with the second generation already holding key leadership and board oversight roles to steward the multi-billion-dollar enterprise into the future.