Hong Kong Tycoon Pays $2 Million Bonus Over Baby Joy

One of Hong Kong's richest property tycoons will hand out a bonus worth $2 million to his 1,500 staff after his actress daughter-in-law gave birth to his sixth grandchild, his firm said Wednesday.

Lee Shau-kee, chairman of the leading property group Henderson Land Development, announced the windfall of HK$10,000 ($1,285) for employees to celebrate the baby boy who was born last week, said spokeswoman Bonnie Ngan.

"We will receive the money at the end of this month," a cheerful Ngan told Agence France Presse. The 83-year-old Lee, ranked 28th on the Forbes' list of billionaires and estimated to be worth $19 billion, has five children. The latest family addition comes from his youngest son, Martin, who is married to actress Cathy Chui. The boy's name is not yet known.

The couple already have two daughters.

It's not the first time that Lee has announced such a bonus for staff. In October he handed out HK$10,000 bonus to employees when his eldest son Peter, a bachelor, gave him triplet grandsons through a surrogate mother.

Male successors are important to Hong Kong's tycoons, some of whom have seen high-profile disputes break out among family members over their vast wealth.