Lim Oon Kuin Net Worth, Relationships, Age/Birthdate & Birthday

Lim Oon Kuin is a Singaporean oil-trading magnate best known for founding and leading one of Asia’s largest independent oil trading firms, transforming a modest diesel-supply business into a global commodities empire — and later facing legal collapse.

Introduction

Lim Oon Kuin (birthdate: 1942) built his fortune as the founder of Hin Leong Trading, once among Asia’s leading oil-trading firms. At the height of his success, his wealth was estimated in the billions of dollars. Over his life, Lim’s journey has been marked by dramatic highs — vast business expansion, global influence — but also by equally dramatic lows: corporate collapse, criminal conviction, and bankruptcy. Public records show he is married, and that his family played significant roles in his business operations. 

Quick Facts

From Modest Beginnings to Oil-Trading Titan

Lim’s story began far from boardrooms and corporate offices. Born in Fujian, China, he emigrated with his family to Singapore at a young age.  With limited formal education, he started life working as an apprentice mechanic — a humble start that would nevertheless plant the seeds of his later business acumen. 

His entrepreneurial journey truly began in 1963. Starting with a single truck delivering diesel to fishing vessels and small rural power producers, Lim demonstrated a knack for identifying demand and seizing opportunity.  Over decades, that single-truck operation evolved into a sprawling enterprise.

Defining moments in Lim Oon Kuin’s journey include:

• Launching the diesel-delivery business in 1963 at a very early stage, which laid the foundation for future oil-trading operations. 

• Expanding operations from fuel supply to global oil trading, shipping, and storage — notably building a fleet of tankers under Ocean Tankers. 

• Establishing, in partnership with major players, a storage arm via Universal Terminal — giving Hin Leong key capacity in oil logistics and storage. 

• Growing Hin Leong into one of Singapore’s and Asia’s largest independent oil-trading firms — marking Lim as one of the most influential commodities traders in the region. 

By orchestrating these strategic moves, Lim transformed from a modest supplier into a powerhouse in global oil trading. But the same ambitions that spurred his rise would later factor heavily in his downfall.

The Core Pillars of Lim Oon Kuin’s Wealth

The wealth amassed by Lim stemmed from a combination of ventures and strategic investments. The main sources included:

• Oil trading and fuel supply: The original core — supplying diesel and later large-scale crude and refined oil trading through Hin Leong.

• Shipping operations: Via Ocean Tankers, which at its peak operated a fleet of over 130 tankers under Lim’s oversight. 

• Oil storage and logistics: Through co-ownership of Universal Terminal, giving Hin Leong crucial storage and logistical capabilities, enhancing margins and market reach. 

These intertwined pillars created a vertically integrated oil-trading empire — from procurement and shipping to storage and distribution — maximizing profitability and influence.

Personal Life: Relationships and Family Connections

Lim’s personal life was closely linked with his business operations. Publicly available information indicates the following:

• He is married. One source names his spouse as Liew Mei Yen. 

• Together they have children who have been involved in different aspects of the business. Among them: Evan Lim Chee Meng (son), and Lim Huey Ching (daughter). 

Key insights into Lim Oon Kuin’s relationships and personal life:

• The Lim family network was integral to the growth and management of Hin Leong, with children managing shipping arms and other operations. 

• Family fortunes — and liabilities — became deeply entangled when the company collapsed, affecting not just Lim but his children as well. 

The Lifestyle, Assets & Interests of a Once-Wealthy Tycoon

Beyond the boardrooms and trading floors, the lifestyle and assets associated with Lim reflected his success — and later, the fallout of his business collapse.

• Ownership of multiple high-end properties, including “Good Class Bungalows” (GCBs) in prestigious Singapore neighbourhoods. After legal troubles surfaced, several of these were reportedly sold or placed under liquidation. 

• A fleet of tankers under Ocean Tankers — a tangible asset not just in name but in real shipping capacity, demonstrating the scale of his logistical control. 

• His life — once characterised by expansion, influence, and prestige — shifted drastically following the collapse of his business, legal convictions, and bankruptcy declaration. 

There is limited public information about philanthropic ventures or personal hobbies — largely overshadowed by the dramatic business and legal developments near the end of his career.

Collapse, Conviction & Net Worth Decline

The downfall of Lim’s empire is as dramatic as its ascent. In 2020, Hin Leong Trading Pte. Ltd. filed for bankruptcy protection after disclosing approximately US$800 million in previously undeclared losses — a shock that reverberated across global commodity markets. 

As a result, Lim’s previously multi-billion-dollar wealth evaporated. By the time of collapse, his status as one of Singapore’s top wealthy individuals was undone. 

In criminal proceedings that followed, Lim was convicted in May 2024 on charges of cheating and instigating forgery related to bogus trade-financing requests with HSBC Holdings — involving roughly US$111.7 million in fraudulent invoices. On November 18, 2024, he was sentenced to 17.5 years in jail.

Following a civil judgment in which the family agreed to pay US$3.5 billion to liquidators and creditors, Lim and two of his children were declared bankrupt in December 2024. 

This collapse effectively nullified the fortune that once made him a billionaire, reshaping his legacy entirely.

Public Image, Legacy & Influence

Lim’s public image is complex and contested. For decades, he was admired as a rags-to-riches success story — a self-made man who built a massive empire from a single diesel truck. He symbolised ambition, grit, and the possibilities within Asia’s fast-growing commodity markets.

But the collapse of Hin Leong and his subsequent conviction for fraud transformed that image. Once viewed as a titan of oil trading, he is now widely cited as a cautionary tale: how opaque accounting, aggressive leverage, and risky trade-financing practices can bring down even the largest firms. Regulators, traders, and market observers reference his case when discussing the importance of transparency, due diligence, and risk management in commodity trading and banking.

In that sense, his influence remains — not as a celebrated mogul, but as a critical example of corporate governance failures in high-stakes global trading.

Conclusion

Lim Oon Kuin’s life reads like a dramatic novel: born in humble circumstances, rising to the pinnacle of success through boldness and hard work, building one of Asia’s largest oil-trading empires — and then seeing it unravel completely under the weight of hidden losses and legal misdeeds. His birthdate (1942) and the legacy of a once-enormous net worth stand in stark contrast to the criminal convictions and bankruptcy that marked the end of his reign.

The story of Lim Oon Kuin is a vivid reminder of both the heights of possibility and the depths of risk in global commodity trading. For all the wealth he amassed, his legacy may ultimately be defined by loss — of fortune, reputation, and empire.