Lui Che Woo built one of the biggest casino resort groups in the world, and he did not start anywhere near a boardroom. Forced out of school at 13 during World War II, he sold street food to survive. He went on to buy surplus US military bulldozers, crush rock for a living, and eventually win one of Macau's first new gaming licenses in decades, founding Galaxy Entertainment Group. He died in November 2024 at 95, and leadership has now passed to the next generation of his family.
How did Lui Che Woo actually get started?
With almost nothing. World War II forced him out of school at 13, and he sold street food just to survive through the war years. That is the real starting point, decades before any casino, resort, or fortune existed. After the war, he saw an opportunity in the surplus left behind by the US military: he bought bulldozers in Okinawa and shipped them to Hong Kong, which was rebuilding and booming at the time. It was practical, unglamorous work, buying used heavy machinery and putting it to use where it was needed most.
Why was he called the King of the Quarry?
Because he built his first real company on crushed rock. In 1955, Lui founded K. Wah Group and moved into one of the least glamorous businesses imaginable: quarrying, crushing rock for construction as Hong Kong expanded. It earned him the nickname King of the Quarry, and it was the foundation everything else was built on. By the 1970s, that foundation had grown into US hotels and Hong Kong property, well before Lui had any connection to the casino industry at all.
How did he end up in the casino business at all?
Through a once-in-a-generation opening. For 40 years, Stanley Ho held a complete monopoly over gambling in Macau. That monopoly ended in 2002, when Macau's government opened the market to new operators for the first time in decades. Lui won one of the new gaming licenses and founded Galaxy Entertainment Group, decades after K. Wah Group had already made him a serious businessman in construction and property. He then built some of Macau's most recognizable resorts, including StarWorld and Galaxy Macau, turning a quarry business's founder into a casino resort magnate almost by way of a regulatory door that had never opened before.
What did he do with the fortune he built?
He gave a substantial share of it away. Lui gave over $1 billion to philanthropic causes, including establishing the Lui Che Woo Prize and funding school rebuilding projects. That is a meaningful detail in a story that started with a 13-year-old selling street food to survive a war: by the end of his life, he was funding education and international recognition prizes at a billion-dollar scale.
What happened after he died?
Leadership passed to his family. Lui Che Woo died in November 2024 at the age of 95. Net worth estimates at the time varied depending on the source and exactly when they were measured, ranging from about $11 billion in Forbes' most recent figures before his death to around $14 billion in some other estimates closer to when he passed away. After his death, his eldest son, Francis Lui, was appointed Chairman of Galaxy Entertainment Group, continuing the business into its second generation.
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The bottom line
Lui Che Woo built a global business empire from scrap machinery and crushed rock, decades before he ever set foot in the casino industry, then turned a once-in-a-generation regulatory opening into one of Macau's biggest resort groups. Leadership has now passed to the next generation of his family, continuing a business that started with a 13-year-old selling street food to survive a war.
Winning a gaming license used to mean waiting decades for a market to open, the way Lui did in 2002. It does not have to anymore. See how licensing actually works for a new operator today, or what it takes to launch your own casino or sportsbook brand without needing a 40-year monopoly to end first.
Key takeaways
- Lui Che Woo was forced out of school at 13 during World War II and sold street food to survive.
- After the war he bought surplus US military bulldozers in Okinawa and shipped them to Hong Kong to help rebuild the city.
- In 1955 he founded K. Wah Group, starting in the unglamorous business of crushing rock, which earned him the nickname King of the Quarry.
- By the 1970s he had expanded into US hotels and Hong Kong property, well before he ever entered the casino business.
- When Macau ended Stanley Ho's 40-year gambling monopoly in 2002, Lui won one of the new gaming licenses and founded Galaxy Entertainment Group, building resorts including StarWorld and Galaxy Macau.
- He gave over $1 billion to philanthropy, including establishing the Lui Che Woo Prize, and died in November 2024 at 95, after which his son Francis Lui was appointed Chairman of Galaxy Entertainment.
