Ringgit, rupiah fall hurt Ananda and Indonesia's Salim

Tycoon T. Ananda krishnan

SINGAPORE: Two of South-East Asia's richest businessmen are experiencing the weight of dollar strength after loading their business empires up with cheap US currency debt.

Anthoni Salim, who controls the First Pacific Co conglomerate, and T Ananda Krishnan (pic), a major shareholder of Malaysian mobile phone operator Maxis Bhd, are feeling the pinch as the rupiah and the ringgit slump to the lowest since the 1998 Asian financial crisis.