The Rise and Rise of the Li Dynasty

1928
Li Ka-shing is born in Shantou, China1940
Moves to Hong Kong

1950
Starts Cheung Kong factory making plastic flowers

1958
Makes first property investment

1964
First son Victor is born in Hong Kong

1966
Second son Richard is born in Hong Kong

1972
Li Ka-shing's company lists on Hong Kong stock exchange as Cheung Kong Holdings

1979
Li Ka-shing buys property and trading conglomerate Hutchison Whampoa from Hongkong & Shanghai Bank

1983-90
Victor Li works on real estate projects for his father in Vancouver

1985
Li Ka-shing buys Hongkong Electric, the territory's main power supplier

1985
Victor Li graduates in construction management and engineering from Stanford

1985
Li Ka-shing establishes Hutchison Telecommunications to launch mobile phone service in Hong Kong

1987
Richard Li graduates from Stanford with a degree in computer science

1987
Richard Li becomes partner in Gordon Capital, a Toronto investment bank

1990
Victor Li returns to Hong Kong to work for Cheung Kong

1990
Richard Li returns to Hong Kong to work for Hutchison Whampoa

1991
Richard Li launches Star TV

1993
Richard Li sells Star to Rupert Murdoch's News Corp. for $950 million, launches Pacific Century Group with the proceeds

1994
Li Ka-shing establishes Orange mobile phone service in Britain

1996
Richard Li establishes Pacific Century CyberWorks

1996
Li Ka-shing launches Cheung Kong Infrastructure Holdings to consolidate group's construction operations

1996
Victor Li kidnapped. Father said to have paid more than $100 million for his release

1999
Richard Li announces Cyberport, a government-backed real estate venture aimed at making Hong Kong a high-tech hub

1999
Li Ka-shing sells Orange to Mannesmann, gets 10% of German firm's shares

1999
Victor Li's kidnapper, Cheung Tze-keung, known as Big Spender, executed in China

1999
Victor Li becomes managing director of Cheung Kong and deputy chairman of Hutchison Whampoa

2000 January
Li Ka-shing establishes Tom.com

2000 February
Mannesmann bought by Vodafone in world's biggest takeover; Li ends up with stock worth $15 billion

2000 February
Tom.com's IPO is oversubscribed 669 times

2000 February
Richard Li buys Cable & Wireless HKT for $38 billion