Veteran securities industry billionaire and investment tycoon Johnson Ko has sold two connected flats on ultra-prime Mount Nicholson for a reported HK$900 million (US $115 million) in one of the largest residential deals this year.
The dual sales represent loud reverberations of Hong Kong’s high-end residential reactivation, and set a new benchmark price-per-square-foot in Asia, providing a clear signal for other long-term holding sellers.
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The buyers are two offshore companies – Prime Alliance Investment Ltd and Venture Gains Investment Ltd, but it is yet unclear who the end beneficiaries are.
Ko originally purchased the apartments for HK$652 million ($83.54 million) in 2017; the transaction closing sum has seen the luxury homes gain in value by approximately 38% over a nine-year period.
Strong signals of recovery in Hong Kong’s luxury segment
Hong Kong’s luxury residential market has been thawing over the last 12 months, with data from global real estate consultancy Knight Frank highlighting the top-end of the segment is trading again.
In January 2026, a four-bedroom duplex unit at The Legacy sold for a record-breaking HK$880 million – the highest ever price paid for a single residential unit in Hong Kong.
The collective net worth of tycoons on the 2026 Forbes list of Hong Kong’s 50 Richest jumped 22% to an all-time high of US $366 billion from $301 billion last year.
The early months of 2026 saw a flurry of activity as Hong Kong’s richest rushed to secure assets before the February budget announcement.
Locally grown business magnates and dynasty heirs were the majority of buyers of the 26 ultra-luxury home transactions exceeding HK$100 million in the last quarter of 2025; 23 were from Hong Kong Island and the remaining three from Kowloon according to the Land Registry.
Transaction volumes are more than double the 13 purchases logged in December the previous year and the highest since 2013, indicating an increasingly bullish return of confidence in Hong Kong’s luxury residential housing market.
Government policies and global wealth shifts
Also contributing to Hong Kong’s ultra-prime market’s renewed vim, is the government’s active push to lure UHNWIs from the other regional wealth hubs such as Dubai and Singapore.
Wealth on the move from the Middle East to more secure global bases is also playing its hand in Hong Kong’s luxury housing recovery.
Despite the Hong Kong government raising stamp duty on super-prime residential deals above HK$100 million in February 2026, it has scrapped most additional ‘cooling’ stamp duties, lowering property taxes for many investors by an approximate 80% compared to the peak of cooling measures.
At the same time buyer confidence is being bolstered by additional tax incentives such as visa and residency routes for talent and the wealthy.
Johnson Ko, worth $1.07 billion according to Forbes, is the founder of Hong Kong financial services firm Reorient Group, which was majority acquired by Alibaba co-founder Jack Ma-led investor group in 2015.
