Smart or deceitful?

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Smart or deceitful?

KUALA LUMPUR, Nov 20, 2025: Country Heights Holdings Bhd (CHHB) founder Lee Kim Yew is bidding to buy back Heritage Tower, a property that he developed.

The New Straits Times reported that CHHB’s wholly owned subsidiary, Country Heights Sea Resort Sdn Bhd, is making the bid.

The news report has been posted and circulated on WhatsApp with the following comments (read and judge for yourself):

Look at this article. It’s a thin line between being deceitful and being smart. Determine it your way.

In summary, he personally developed this office tower 10 years ago at a cost of RM 60 million, apparently with a bank loan, quantum of which is not reported here. Under normal circumstances, I guess the loan should be around RM 45-50 million.

He defaulted on the loan, the property seized and put under auction.

He waited until the auction price of the property dropped after several rounds of no bidders.

When the price dropped to RM 39 million, he uses another of his company to bid for it. This amount is probably less than the bank loan plus interest that he originally defaulted.

What a good deal.

Now he is complaining that the auction process is not transparent. He is not bothered if the bank is aware of his ploy.

He was once a mighty businessman whom I sat on the same table for lunch some 30 years ago after he successfully used a proxy to buy over the controlling stake of our public listed company for RM 350 million.

Today he is resorting  to such measures. Is he being smart or being unethical ? It’s indeed a thin line.

Cheers and have a nice  day ahead. 

No bidders for Heritage Tower; Country Heights founder to negotiate directly with Maybank [BTTV]

By Sharen Kaur

October 28, 2025 @ 8:08am

The public auction of The Heritage office tower at Mines Wellness City, with a reserve price of RM39.69 million (equivalent to RM123 per sq ft), drew no online bidders, leaving the property unsold.

The only attendee at the auction on Monday (Oct 27) was Tan Sri Lee Kim Yew, founder of Country Heights Holdings Bhd, whose wholly owned subsidiary, Country Heights Sea Resort Sdn Bhd (CHSRSB), was among the interested bidders.

"I attended the public auction with the intention of bidding for the property at its reserve price of RM39.69 million. Since there were no other bidders today, the auctioneer, Ng Chan Mau & Co., said that I can negotiate directly with Malayan Banking Bhd (Maybank). I intend to proceed with this as soon as possible to resolve any outstanding matters with the bank," Lee said.

The Heritage Tower, a 10-storey office building spanning 343,405 square feet (about RM174.72 per sq ft), was developed over a decade ago by Heritage Lakeside Developments, a private company linked to Lee.

The property was charged under a financing arrangement and subsequently placed for auction by Ng Chan Mau & Co., the appointed auctioneer acting on behalf of Maybank.

CHSRSB has had its sights set on The Heritage Office Tower since the very first public auction.

The first auction was held on Aug 20, 2021, with a reserve price of RM60 million.

In December 2021, the company had successfully bid for the property at RM60 million but later reported significant damage to the building's ground floor. Lee said efforts to resolve the matter with the relevant parties did not yield results, leading to the forfeiture of the RM6 million deposit.

In November 2022, CHSRSB again won the bid for the property at a revised price of RM44.1 million and entered into a memorandum of contract with the auctioneer. However, the transaction was not completed within the stipulated 120-day period, resulting in another forfeiture and subsequent legal proceedings.

Under the agreement, the balance payment of RM39.69 million, or 90 per cent of the purchase price, was to be settled within the specified timeframe. CHSRSB's request for an extension was not approved.

Lee said that a separate incident of vandalism occurred during the same period, this time damaging the first floor. A police report was subsequently lodged.

He noted that the Heritage Tower has gone through eight rounds of auction, with adjustments to the reserve price over time.

"Initially, the reserve price for the property was set at RM60 million. The price gradually dropped to RM54 million, then to RM48 million, but suddenly rose back to RM60 million when our company attempted to bid. This is highly unusual. The price should have been adjusted downward, not restored to RM60 million. This pattern of revisions is unusual and warrants greater scrutiny," he said.

Lee also called for greater transparency in the auction process, raising concerns over the recent revision of the deposit requirement from 10 per cent to 20 per cent this month.

"Twenty per cent of RM39.69 million is over RM7 million. There were no bidders even the last time. What's the logic in raising the deposit to 20 per cent when nobody bid at 10 per cent? The property's value will only decline further."

Responding to the matter during the public auction, Ng Chan Mau & Co. licensed auctioneer Rosemaini Ahmad Radzi said that any amendments to auction terms are made at the discretion of the bank prior to the auction.

"You need to discuss this with Maybank. We are only the third party here. The bank is giving us the instructions. We just follow whatever instructions given by the bank," she said.

Rosemaini also clarified that the property is offered on an 'as is, where is' basis, as stated in the bidder's copy.

A lawyer representing Maybank, who was present during the auction, declined to comment.

Meanwhile, Lee said questions remain regarding the number of online bidders and the basis for the revised deposit requirement.

"This media briefing is intended to highlight ongoing concerns about the procedural clarity of the auction process conducted by Ng Chan Mau & Co.," he said.

"Our objective is simple – we seek a transparent and fair process for all parties involved," he added. - NST

Tan Sri Lee Kim Yew, founder of Country Heights Holdings Bhd, whose wholly owned subsidiary, Country Heights Sea Resort Sdn Bhd was among the interested bidders said he will talk to Maybank on the sale of The Heritage office tower. Pic credit: Sharen Kaur