Forrest Li

Entrepreneur, Business Executive, Football Administrator

Singaporean Tianjin, China

Quick Info

ProfessionEntrepreneur, Business Executive, Football Administrator
NationalitySingaporean
BirthplaceTianjin, China

Latest News about Forrest Li

20/10/2026

Sea Limited announced it is starting a new enterprise cloud business called Sea Cloud, which will offer cloud services to businesses worldwide, according to a memo from CEO Forrest Li to staff. The memo also said the company is weighing a public listing of its fintech arm, Monee. Investors reacted negatively, and Sea's shares fell about 9% in the days that followed.

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Bio/Wiki

Full NameForrest Li Xiaodong
Known ForFounder and CEO of Sea Limited, a global consumer internet and technology conglomerate
Current Roles
  • Chairman and CEO of Sea Limited
  • President of the Football Association of Singapore (2025-2029 term)
  • Vice Chair of Stanford Graduate School of Business's advisory council
  • Trustee of the National University of Singapore
  • Independent non-executive director of Shangri-La Asia Limited, a Singapore-based hospitality company

Physical Stats & More

Eye ColourBlack
Hair ColourBlack

Educational Qualification(s)

Universities
  • Shanghai Jiao Tong University, Shanghai
  • Stanford Graduate School of Business, California
Qualifications
  • Bachelor's degree in engineering from Shanghai Jiao Tong University
  • Master of Business Administration (MBA) from Stanford Graduate School of Business

Personal Life

HobbiesPlaying online video games
InterestsFootball

Relationships & More

Marital StatusMarried
Met SpouseMet his future wife, Ma Liqian, at Stanford University

Family

Wife/SpouseMa Liqian
ChildrenTwo children

Career

Early Career
  • Started his professional career at multinational companies including Motorola Solutions and Corning as a recruiter
  • Worked at Viacom Media Networks
  • Left his job after about four years to pursue further studies in the United States
Entrepreneurship
  • Founded Sea Limited in 2009, initially launching the company as Garena, a digital entertainment business focused on online gaming
  • Started the company from a small office in a shophouse on Maxwell Road, Singapore
  • Faced fundraising difficulties because the company launched during the global financial crisis
  • Launched Shopee, an e-commerce platform, in 2015
  • Introduced Monee (formerly SeaMoney), offering digital financial services including payments and lending
  • In May 2017, raised US$550 million in a funding round and renamed the parent company Sea Ltd. (Garena retained for its gaming business)
  • Entered the billionaire club in March 2019 after Sea Limited's share price rose by 45%
Football Involvement
  • In 2016, Garena signed a two-year sponsorship deal with Singapore's Young Lions worth S$4 million
  • In 2019, joined Home United as chairman of the management committee
  • In 2020, Sea acquired Home United and renamed it Lion City Sailors FC, the first privatization of a Singapore Premier League club
  • In 2021, co-opted into the Executive Committee of the Singapore National Olympic Council
  • In 2022, Lion City Sailors opened a 28,000 square meter training facility worth S$10 million on Mattar Road
  • On 28 April 2025, became president of the Football Association of Singapore for the 2025-2029 term, elected unopposed
  • In November 2025, pledged S$2 million in personal bonuses to the national team's qualifying campaign for the 2027 AFC Asian Cup
  • In March 2026, Sea Limited pledged S$50 million to support long-term development of Singapore football
Net WorthUS$4.9 billion (as of October 2026, per Forbes estimate on 28 October 2026)

Some Lesser Known Facts

1. Spent much of his youth playing games at cybercafes in Tianjin, which sparked his interest in building a global technology business
2. Heard Steve Jobs's 'stay hungry, stay foolish' speech while studying at Stanford, which inspired him to become a startup founder
3. Lived with his wife in a single bedroom in a three-room public housing unit in Braddell, Singapore, due to limited financial resources
4. Became a Singapore citizen before founding Sea Limited in 2009
5. Lion City Sailors won both the league title and the domestic cup in the 2024-25 season under his ownership
6. Lion City Sailors became the first Singaporean club to reach the AFC Champions League Two final, where they lost 2-1 to Sharjah FC
7. Appeared on the cover of Forbes Asia in August 2020
8. In October 2026, Garena relaunched Free Fire in India with features such as parental control, playtime limits, and spending restrictions
Information on this page is collected from public sources and may not be 100% accurate. Report an error
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