From Billionaire To Mounting Debt: Vicki Zhao’s Ex-Husband's Financial Troubles Explained

Chinese actress Vicki Zhao’s ex-husband, China-born Singaporean tycoon Huang Youlong, is back in the spotlight after Hong Kong reports revealed he lost a whopping A$60mil (S$53.8mil) at Crown Perth casino in Australia over just six days in 2015.

According to court documents cited in the reports, Crown’s credit department refused to extend gambling credit as Yulong, 50, already owed money to several casinos around the world.

Instead, Michelle Chua, then the Vice President of Marketing at Crown Melbourne, arranged for Macau junket operator Suncity to provide him with A$40mil (S$35.9mil) worth of gambling chips.

Yulong reportedly blew through the entire sum in just two days.

He then asked for more credit and was given another A$20mil (S$17.9mil), which he also lost, bringing his total losses to A$60mil (S$53.8mil) in just six days.

Between 2015 and 2019, Yulong made a series of repayments and issued three cheques that later bounced. Part of the debt was also offset using a luxury Hong Kong property valued at HK$65mil (S$10.6mil) before Suncity confirmed in 2019 that his A$60mil (S$53.8mil) gambling debt had been fully repaid.

The eye-popping gambling losses are just one chapter in Yulong’s dramatic financial story.

At the height of their wealth, Yulong and Vicki were reportedly worth more than US$1bil (S$1.3bil).

Much of the couple's fortune came from investments. Over the years, they built a sprawling business empire spanning real estate, film, and wine, and were among the major shareholders of Alibaba Pictures at one point.

In 2020, Yulong made headlines in Singapore after splashing S$27.65mil on a two-storey penthouse at Ardmore Park condominium, with the couple's daughter, April, now 16, as the beneficiary. He also reportedly owned another apartment in the same luxury development.

However, behind the displays of wealth, Yulong was already facing mounting legal and financial troubles.

He has reportedly faced multiple lawsuits over unpaid debts in recent years.

In 2021, he was sued for HK$298mil (about S$52mil at the time) for allegedly failing to repay a debt of HK$150mil (S$26mil) dating back to 2016.

Later that year, Yulong and Vicki were sued again over a separate guarantee dispute.

The couple had also previously been embroiled in controversy over their failed takeover of a Chinese listed company, which resulted in both of them being banned from China's stock market for five years in 2018.