Background
In 1917, Salim was born as Lim Shao Liang, in Fuqing, Fujian, China, the second son of a farmer. According to the Chinese zodiac, he was born in the Year of the Snake, on the seventh day of the seventh month.
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He was once considered the richest individual in Indonesia. Salim diversified their peanut oil trading business into the clove market, which was growing rapidly from demand for kretek production. While in Medan, he supplied soldiers of the Indonesian National Revolution with medical supplies and came into contact with Suharto, an officer of the army.
Salim denied allegations that he also provided arms to Indonesian soldiers to resist Dutch forces.
As soldiers seized Dutch businesses following independence, his business absorbed many of their assets and gained a monopoly in the clove market, but he denied working with Suharto in expanding his ventures. In 1952, after moving to Jakarta, Salim expanded his trading business by establishing connections with other ethnic Chinese businessmen in Singapore and Hong Kong.
His soap factory became one of the primary suppliers to the Indonesian National Armed Forces. He later expanded into textiles and banking, eventually establishing largest private bank in Indonesia—the Bank Central Asia (Bank Central Asia).
In 1968, after a merger, he gained the right to a monopoly on clove importation.
Bogasari, a joint venture with another Hokchia businessman became the largest producer of flour in Indonesia. These two companies were said to have provided him with the capital to establish the cement giant Indocement in 1973. In 1990, he established the food manufacturer Indofood, the country"s largest maker of instant noodles.
By 1997, the Salim Group possessed United States$20 billion in assets and included more than 500 companies employing over 200,000 Indonesians.
When the Asian Financial Crisis hit, the conglomerate incurred United States$4.8 billion in debts. He eventually settled in Los Angeles in the United States.
Forbes magazine listed him as the 25th wealthiest businessperson in Southeast Asia in 2004 with a Netto worth of United States$655 million. On June 10, 2012, a month before his 96th birthday, Salim died from natural causes in Raffles Hospital, Singapore.
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Born
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Died
June 11, 2012 (aged 95) -
Nationality
Indonesia -
Ethnicity