[3] Tan's success in the Malaysian business sector has been attributed in part to his close association with prominent Malay political figures.

[5] Tan had originally planned to study law in New Zealand, but as his father's business was failing, he found work as a clerk in a bank instead.

[9] Below are the listed subsidiaries under Berjaya Corporation Berhad[citation needed]: In May 2010, Tan became the owner of Cardiff City after a consortium of Malaysian investors (led by Dato Chan Tien Ghee) bought 30% of the club's shares.

[10][11] In May 2012, the consortium said they would invest £100 million to increase the stadium's capacity and build a new training ground, providing they were given permission to rebrand the club from blue to red.

[11] In October 2013, Tan created more controversy after suspending Iain Moody, the club's head of recruitment, who had apparently overspent by £15 million during the summer transfer window.

[19] Moody was initially added to the backroom staff by then manager Malky Mackay, and helped Cardiff sign several players ahead of their inaugural Premier League campaign.

[22] Despite going over budget during the summer, Mackay publicly stated his plans to boost his squad during the January transfer window, which upset Tan, who said that no money would be made available.

[26] After his sacking, it was alleged that Mackay had sent texts of an anti-Chinese nature, which was defended by Dave Whelan, owner of his subsequent employers Wigan Athletic.

"[27] On 2 January 2014, former Manchester United striker Ole Gunnar Solskjær was hired as Mackay's replacement,[28] but he was unable to save Cardiff from relegation.

[32] Under the deal, Cardiff will cooperate with FK Sarajevo, exchanging players and taking part in a football academy, yet to be established, which Tan has said will lure new talents.

[33] FK Sarajevo qualified for the Play-off round of the 2014–15 UEFA Europa League, where they lost to German Bundesliga side Borussia Mönchengladbach.

He said in a pre-match interview: "Because of my involvement with Sarajevo Football Club, when I heard about the floods, I urged the Sun newspaper to run a campaign to raise donations to help Bosnia.

[36] In 2019, Tan convinced the club to sign Malaysian teen sensation Luqman Hakim Shamsudin of Selangor on a five-year contract.

[38] Reports from 2017 indicate that Tan is looking to sell Cardiff City, his stake in Major League Soccer’s Los Angeles FC and his professional teams in Bosnia and Belgium.