Lynn Ban: Star of reality show Bling Empire dies after skiing accident

Lynn Ban, star of Netflix reality show Bling Empire: New York, has died after having brain surgery due to a skiing accident.

The 51-year-old jewellery designer from Singapore died on Monday, her son Sebastian announced on social media – weeks after she underwent emergency brain surgery due to a skiing accident.

Last month, Ban, who lived in New York, shared with her Instagram followers that she “had a ski accident that would change my life” while on holiday in Aspen on Christmas Eve.

She revealed a CAT scan showed she had a severe head injury, including a brain bleed, meaning she needed an emergency craniotomy.

She said she woke up in hospital with her husband Jett Kain nearby, and hoped to recover this year.

In an update on her Instagram account on Wednesday, her son Sebastian wrote: “My mum passed away on Monday. I know she wanted to share her journey after her accident and brain surgery, so I thought she would appreciate one last post sharing the news to people who supported her.

“Many of you followed my mum but never got the chance to know her or meet her in person,” he added.

“I would like to take the chance to share who my mum really was. She was and always will be my best friend, the best mother to me, and someone who cared for all.

“She always had a smile on her face even when times were tough during her recovery process.

“She was a fighter until the end and is the strongest woman I know. She was the funniest and coolest mum I could ever ask for. She took care of me, my dad, and our entire family throughout her whole life.

“Although she may be gone now, I will do everything I can to make sure she is never forgotten and for her life to be celebrated as it deserves to be.

“As a final message to my mum, I would just like to say that I will miss you forever and to end in something she always told me ‘I love you more than life itself’ mum.”

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Ban starred in Bling Empire: New York, a spinoff of the popular Netflix reality series Bling Empire, which followed a group of wealthy Asian American socialites living in Los Angeles.

She also had a private jewellery label which catered to a host of celebrities, including thRihanna, Beyonce, Cardi B, Billie Eilish, Madonna, Lady Gaga, Kendrick Lamar and Post Malone.

Pop star Rihanna was among those who paid tribute on social media, writing: “2025 is rocking me at this point! This is too much!!! Lynn you will always be our fairy godmother!”

Designers Bea Akerlund and Phillip Bloch, Younger star Debi Mazar, and A Star Is Born actress Drena De Niro also paid tribute.