The investments were carried out through nine entities based in Singapore and London that are linked to the billionaire family, Bloomberg reported, citing filings and people familiar with the matter.
They began in late 2023 with Evergreen Hill’s US$669 million purchase of a US-based specialized paper business. The same firm bought an Austrian cigarette paper manufacturer for around $418 million a year later.
Evergreen is described in official filings and press releases as part of “a successful, Indonesia-based privately held group,” without any mention of the Hartonos or their major holding companies. However, filings in Singapore and Indonesia show that the firm’s sole owner is PT Eragraha Pirantimegah, which the family wholly owns.
The overseas acquisitions represent a shift for the Hartonos, who have historically kept their wealth at home even as other prominent Indonesian billionaires like Prajogo Pangestu and Low Tuck Kwong have expanded into overseas markets including Singapore and Hong Kong.
Their business empire traces its roots to the late Oei Wie Gwan’s Djarum, which manufactures clove cigarettes known as kretek, according to Reuters.
Led by the late Michael Bambang Hartono until his death and his younger brother Robert Budi, 85, the business expanded and diversified into sectors such as electric vehicle distribution, property and banking.
Michael passed away in March at age 86, leaving his fortune to his four children.
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The late Indonesian billionaire Michael Bambang Hartono. Photo from Como 1907's website |
Forbes’ real-time data pins Robert’s net worth at $16.8 billion while Michael’s four heirs are each worth $4 billion.
The Chinese-Indonesian family is known for keeping a low public profile, revealing little about their personal lives or the extent of their wealth and business interests.
Though most of the Hartonos’ assets are still within Indonesia, their recent overseas investments suggest concerns over the country’s economy.
Sources also attributed the moves to rising tensions with President Prabowo Subianto, per Bloomberg.
Since he took office in October 2024, the country has experienced a wave of capital outflows that has triggered a stock-market selloff, making Indonesian equities the world’s worst-performing market this year and stoking uncertainty in some of the country’s most prominent sectors.
Foreign investors have sold almost $4 billion worth of equities on a net basis since January, nearly four times the amount recorded throughout 2025.
The rout also wiped out a large chunk of the fortunes of Indonesia’s richest billionaires earlier this year, though stocks have been recovering in recent months.
The IDX Composite rose 4.6% in August after gaining 10.5% in July. That added $6.3 billion to the combined net worth of the four richest Indonesians, including Robert, last month.