In this biography
Quick facts
- Born
- Not securely established
- Birthplace
- Not independently established
- Country
- Malaysia
- Nationality
- Not independently established
- Known for
- Leading S P Setia and participating in the Battersea consortium before joining EcoWorld
- Education
- Economics, business administration, University of Malaya
- S P Setia leadership
- May 1996–30 April 2014
- Battersea chairmanship
- 2012–September 2015
Why this life matters
His career highlights the organisational work behind township development and a cross-border consortium, rather than treating a project as one person’s sole creation.
Timeline
Key moments
Merchant banking
Started his career in a local merchant bank.
Property development
Moved into development after roughly five years in banking.
S P Setia leadership
Became group managing director in May after a reverse takeover.
Battersea consortium
Led the Malaysian consortium’s successful site bid.
A company transition
Left S P Setia 30 April; joined EcoWorld’s board 5 May.
Board chairmanship
EcoWorld redesignated him chairman on 20 March.
Banking and a first development
Liew Kee Sin holds an economics degree in business administration from the University of Malaya. He began his career at a local merchant bank in 1981. EcoWorld’s 2019 profile says he moved into property development after five years in banking. A later interview’s introduction contains a different shorthand for the starting year, so the broader 1980s transition is more securely stated than a forced exact date.
In his 2016 interview with The Edge’s property publication, Liew identified Taman Bukit Indah in Ampang as his first project. He recalled flooding before a launch because drainage had been overlooked, and damage to nearby roofs during construction. These were his retrospective accounts of practical mistakes. They give a more concrete picture of learning to develop housing than an unqualified story of uninterrupted success.
S P Setia and the scale of a developer
Following a reverse takeover of S P Setia, Liew became its group managing director in May 1996. He led the developer as president and chief executive until 30 April 2014. This was a prolonged period of company leadership, rather than a claim that the existing listed company had first been created by him in 1996.
His interview described a shift from selling individual houses towards planning amenities, access and a wider neighbourhood experience. He contrasted a site office with a show gallery and spoke about engaging younger employees and buyers. These statements explain his commercial approach in 2016. They should be read as the developer’s own account of its aims, not as an independent finding that every completed neighbourhood delivered all those promises.
Battersea was a consortium project
In 2012 Liew led the Malaysian consortium of S P Setia, Sime Darby and the Employees Provident Fund in the successful bid for London’s Battersea Power Station site. He became the first chairman of the project holding company and remained in that position until September 2015. Naming the consortium members matters: the bid and subsequent redevelopment depended on several institutions and teams, not just the ambition of a single executive.
The power-station project also required a different setting from his early housing development in Ampang. It was a cross-border undertaking around an existing industrial landmark. His 2016 reflection emphasised the experience of bringing such a site back into use. That recollection conveys his perspective; the dates of the bid and chairmanship establish the more limited institutional role that can be verified from the selected records.
The move to EcoWorld
After leaving S P Setia on 30 April 2014, Liew joined Eco World Development Group’s board as a non-independent non-executive director on 5 May. He was redesignated board chairman on 20 March 2015. Keeping the dates and descriptions separate shows that entry to a board and a later chairmanship were different steps. The 2019 report’s titles are historical evidence rather than an automatic statement of his position in October 2026.
His career is distinctive for connecting banking knowledge, property operations and large project partnerships. The interview’s recurring concerns—drainage, access, amenities, communication and a capable team—locate that work in the choices required to deliver places people would use. Its useful lesson is organisational and practical, without turning a biography into homebuying advice or treating sales figures as proof of personal or public value.
Quick answers
Frequently asked questions about Liew Kee Sin
- Did Liew alone own or develop Battersea?
- The records identify a consortium of S P Setia, Sime Darby and EPF, and a project holding-company chairmanship.
- Was joining EcoWorld’s board the same event as becoming chairman?
- No. He joined on 5 May 2014 and was redesignated chairman on 20 March 2015.
Keep exploring
Lives connected to this story
- Lee Kim Yew
Compare a different Malaysian property-development career.
- Jeffrey Cheah
Compare the development of a township business and related institutions.
Sources and further reading
Explore the evidence
These references support the biography and offer further reading. Official records, first-person accounts and independent reporting provide different perspectives; image records document attribution and licensing.
- 1. Eco World Development Group BerhadAnnual Report 2019: Liew Kee Sin profile
Actual original 215-page PDF acquired; only PDF 51/printed 49 Liew profile read. Banking 1981, five-year transition, May 1996–30 April 2014 S P Setia, 2012 consortium, September 2015 Battersea chair endpoint, 5 May 2014/20 March 2015 appointments used. Dated age 61 is not converted to an exact birth year/day. No full financial statements or current role assumed.
- 2. EdgeProp.my / The Edge Financial DailyLiew Kee Sin: Achieve greater heights by embracing technology, 26 August 2016
Actual retained interview and biographical introduction read in full, excluding navigation. First project, drainage/roof recollections, planning/amenities/team perspective used with attribution. Intro says property since 1989 but also five years after 1981 banking; exact transition year withheld. Market forecasts and homebuying tips not adopted.