news

한어Русский языкEnglishFrançaisIndonesianSanskrit日本語DeutschPortuguêsΕλληνικάespañolItalianoSuomalainenLatina

Nowadays, the Nth generation of rich people are taking over the family business, injecting fresh blood and innovative thinking into the family. Of course, it is not easy to pass on the family business, and family infighting and sibling feuds are also common. So, how did their family manage to be rich for N generations?

· · ·

Recently, listed companies have been flocking to show off their performance reports, and China Biologic Products, a giant in the pharmaceutical industry, also showed off its impressive semi-annual report: after "slimming down" for half a year, it made a huge profit of over 3 billion, a year-on-year increase of nearly 140%.

Behind the company's soaring performance, the post-90s leaders can no longer hide, and they look like the top-notch heirs of the overlords in romance novels:

Xie Qirun, a female chairman born in the 1990s, parachuted into the 40 billion China Biopharmaceutical Company at the age of 23. Four years later, she pushed it to the throne of 100 billion. She chatted and laughed with Dong Mingzhu and Lei Jun, and was called the "Princess of the Pharmaceutical Industry" because of her beautiful appearance.

Xie Chengrun, the post-95s CEO, is her younger brother. He holds a master's degree from Tsinghua University and has 30 billion assets at the age of 27. The people he took photos with are basketball superstar Yao Ming, American singer Rihanna, supermodel Bella...

This pair of "rich siblings" come from the Charoen Pokphand Group family, which has long dominated the throne of Thailand's richest man. They can be said to be genuine "fourth generation of wealth."

In fact, the current Nth generation of rich people are taking over the family business, injecting fresh blood and innovative thinking into the family. Of course, it is not easy to pass on the family business, and family infighting and sibling feuds are also often staged. So, how did their family manage to be rich for N generations?

1.

/ The story of the post-90s "rich sister and brother":

Helming a 100 billion empire, owning tens of billions of assets /

By the end of July this year, Xie Chengrun, the young coach of the wealthy club, had taken over as CEO for exactly two years.

Two years ago, when he took office as CEO, it was interpreted by the outside world as the official debut of the fourth generation of the "Tse Family".

At that time, he was only 27 years old and had assets of 30 billion. Through his wholly-owned company, he held approximately 21.53% of the shares of China Biopharmaceutical.

Now, two years have passed, and he has delivered a satisfactory answer. In the first half of this year, China Biopharmaceuticals achieved strong performance, with net profit attributable to the parent company doubling directly:

The company's revenue was 15.87 billion yuan, up 11.1% year-on-year; net profit attributable to the parent company was 3.02 billion yuan, up 139.7% year-on-year. After adjustment, the net profit attributable to the parent company was 1.54 billion yuan, up 14% year-on-year.

This is mainly due to their slimming down operation. In the first half of this year, Sino Biopharm sold its equity in CP Qingdao and earned RMB 1.71 billion. This transaction reduced the company's equity in CP Qingdao from 93% to 26%, which was directly recorded as an investment in an associated company.

In fact, in the two years since Xie Chengrun took office, he has carried out several integration and downsizing operations, divesting companies such as CP General, Suzhou Tianqing, Lianyungang CP Tianqing, and Zhejiang Tianqing, and getting rid of the distribution business and some general medicine businesses.

Not only that, China's biopharmaceuticals' performance in business operations is also remarkable.

In the first half of this year, the company's revenue from chemical generic drugs and innovative products increased by 9% and 14.8% year-on-year respectively. 11 generic drugs were approved for marketing, and innovative products accounted for 38.62% of total revenue. At the same time, the company had 4 innovative products approved for marketing in China, becoming the company with the largest number of approved innovative drugs in China.

With strong business acumen at a young age, this "rich brother and sister" can be said to have a smooth life, just like the top-notch protagonists in romance novels.

In August 1995, my younger brother Xie Chengrun was born in Seattle, USA. He attended elementary school in Beijing and middle school in Hong Kong, China. Therefore, he can not only speak authentic Beijing dialect, but also fluent Cantonese and English.

In college, Xie Chengrun studied at the Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania and received a Bachelor of Science degree in Economics.

Xie Chengrun is not only a top student, but also a famous figure on campus. He founded the Penn Wharton China-US Summit and was featured in the news broadcast...

In 2017, Xie Chengrun was invited to become the president of Liepin North America, and transformed himself into a handsome and wealthy "post-95 president".

Later, Xie Chengrun chose to pursue graduate studies and entered Tsinghua University's Schwarzman College to pursue a master's degree in management and global leadership.

In 2018, Xie Chengrun joined China Biopharmaceuticals and was selected as one of the “Top Ten Outstanding Young Chinese in the United States” that year.

What’s more amazing is that he achieved perfect success in becoming rich overnight.

In 2019, Xie Chengrun, who was only 24 years old, became a billionaire overnight thanks to the US$3.8 billion (about RMB 26.7 billion) worth of stocks given by his parents, and ranked 550th on the Forbes Global Rich List.

That year, Xie Chengrun began to serve as a director of Sino Biopharmaceutical's subsidiary, Chia Tai Tianqing, and became the chairman of Chia Tai Tianqing in July 2020. Two years later, Xie Chengrun was appointed CEO of Sino Biopharmaceutical.

Before that, his elder sister Xie Qirun had been at the helm of Sino Biopharmaceuticals for many years. In fact, Xie Qirun is also a "white, rich and beautiful" who has been successful all the way. Although she is relatively low-key, her beauty and talent cannot be hidden.

Xie Qirun graduated from the Wharton School of Business in the United States, majoring in medicine and finance, and then joined the family business. In 2015, at the age of 23, she served as the chairman of the board and executive director of Sino Biopharmaceutical.

At first, people were skeptical. What could a 23-year-old girl do? Experience life?

But what "slapped them in the face" was that just half a year after taking office, Xie Qirun delivered a revenue of HK$14.55 billion and a net profit of HK$1.778 billion.

In 2018, Xie Qirun, along with senior executives such as Dong Mingzhu and Tao Huabi, was listed on the Forbes list of outstanding Chinese business women, ranking 25th.

In the same year, China Biopharmaceuticals' annual report disclosed the "executive compensation and shareholding" data. Xie Qirun's annual salary was 17.805 million yuan, an increase of 8.935 million yuan from 2017, which made countless post-90s people envious.

After four years at the helm, Xie Qirun has pushed China Biopharmaceuticals to the top of the 100 billion yuan throne. In 2019, the market value of China Biopharmaceuticals reached a peak of HK$140.7 billion (RMB 113.5 billion). In the 2019 Hurun List of Female Entrepreneurs, Zheng Xiangling and Xie Qirun, mother and daughter, ranked seventh with a wealth of RMB 44 billion.

In 2018, Sino Biopharm was included in the Hang Seng Index constituent stocks, and became a constituent stock of the Hang Seng China Enterprises Index in 2019. From 2019 to 2020, it was selected as one of the "Top 50 Global Pharmaceutical Companies" by the U.S. "Pharm Exec" for two consecutive years, ranking first among Chinese pharmaceutical companies.

In 2024, Xie Qirun was selected for the "Forbes China 2024 Outstanding 100 Business Women" list, and she has been on this list four times before.

In addition, Xie Qirun also "crossed over" to the field of art. In May 2020, the X Art Museum co-founded by Xie Qirun and post-90s art collector Huang Xufu opened. Sequoia Capital partner Cao Xi and Shuidichou and Shuidi Insurance founder Shen Peng served as directors of the X Art Museum.

2.

/ Chaoshan people have become the richest people.

"Xie Brothers" took the initiative to give up their positions /

Of course, this pair of "rich siblings" are at the helm of a listed company at a young age, which is due to their own efforts, but also inseparable from the support of their family. After all, they are backed by the richest family in Thailand - Charoen Pokphand Group.

If Koreans cannot live without Samsung Group, then Thais cannot live without Charoen Pokphand Group.

In Thailand, CP Group has businesses ranging from small businesses such as crop seeds and fish to large businesses such as information communications, banking and real estate. The "Xie family" behind CP Group is also legendary.

The founder of the CP Group and the great-grandfather of the "rich siblings" is Xie Yichu, an industrialist born in Chenghai, Shantou. Xie Yichu has four sons, and the eldest, Xie Zhengmin, was the first to join the group and later naturally inherited the family business.

But the eldest brother soon discovered that the fourth brother, Xie Guomin, seemed to have more talent in business, and for the sake of the family business, he also wanted to let Xie Guomin take over. In 1970, after weighing the pros and cons, Xie Yichu handed over the power of the president of the CP Group to Xie Guomin, and Xie Guomin became the helmsman of the second generation of the "Xie family".

In 1978, Xie Guomin registered the CP Group, the first foreign-invested enterprise to invest in China. It is also one of the foreign companies with the most investment projects and the largest investment and trade volume in China.

In 1989, Charoen Pokphand Group invested in the establishment of Charoen Pokphand Variety Company with Shanghai Television Station to produce the entertainment program "Charoen Pokphand Variety Show" with the participation of the general public. It began to be broadcast on CCTV and became a "childhood memory" for many people.

As a result, the CP Group quickly gained popularity in China, and its CP seeds and CP fertilizers were often in short supply. Subsequently, the CP Group extended its reach to dozens of fields, including telecommunications, petrochemicals, medicine, finance, and retail. In 1987, the CP Group ranked among the top 500 companies in the world.

In the 1990s, Charoen Pokphand’s annual revenue was equivalent to 10% of Thailand’s GDP, and the Xie family became the richest family in Thailand.

During this period, Xie Guomin also introduced modern corporate management mechanisms, separated capital and operations, and solved the problems of corporate governance and family inheritance governance in the family business governance system. This not only avoided family infighting and disputes, but also ensured the sustainable operation of the family business.

Later, Xie Bing, the eldest son of the eldest brother Xie Zhengmin and the father of the "rich siblings", gradually became a leader in the third generation of the "Xie family". Therefore, Xie Guomin did not let his children take over the group, but passed it back to the eldest brother's son Xie Bing. It can be said that the Xie brothers' concept of "giving way to the wise" is deeply rooted in the hearts of the people, and they have become a rope for the family inheritance.

Today, Xie Bing is the senior vice chairman of CP Group, chairman of CP Pharmaceutical Group, etc. In 2024, Xie Bing was listed on the Hurun Global Rich List with a wealth of 37 billion yuan.

Xie Bing and Zheng Xiangling also co-founded Sino Biopharmaceuticals. In 2000, Sino Biopharmaceuticals was successfully listed on the Hong Kong Stock Exchange. Its core companies include Chia Tai Tianqing and Beijing Taide Pharmaceutical.

Zheng Xiangling is currently the chairman of Beijing Taide Pharmaceutical and Charoen Pokphand Qingdao. She is from Yulin, Shaanxi Province, and later settled in Hong Kong, China.

Today, China's biopharmaceuticals have been passed into the hands of a "rich sister and brother". The sister is the chairman and the brother is the CEO. So how do the two siblings divide the work?

According to the company, Xie Qirun focuses on the group's strategic planning, internationalization, capital market operations, and listed company-related affairs; Xie Chengrun focuses on the operation management, organizational optimization, and efficiency improvement of all subsidiaries under the listed company. It can be said that the two of them are also doing their own jobs and working together to make the company bigger and stronger.

Today, the Chia Tai Group of the Seah family has a history of more than 100 years. However, on the Forbes "2024 Thailand Rich List", the Seah family, which has been the richest in Thailand for more than ten years, fell to second place, with its wealth shrinking to US$29 billion, mainly due to the decline in the stocks it holds. After the stock price rises, it may still return to the richest throne.

3.

/ "Abandoned" became the richest man in Taiwan, China.

There is a big trick to crack "family infighting" /

Nowadays, more and more young heirs are coming to power. Behind their wealth passed down through generations, there is not only strong family support, but also contracts and rules as a foundation.

The Tsai family, the "richest family in Taiwan", is also a typical example of "rich for three generations". In 2023, on the Forbes Taiwan Rich List, brothers Tsai Ming-chung and Tsai Ming-hsing of Fubon Financial Holdings won the title of "richest family in Taiwan" with a wealth of US$8.8 billion. The two brothers are only one year apart in age and are called "Big Dong" and "Second Dong" respectively.

Their father, Tsai Wan-tsai, was not only the "richest man in Taiwan, China", but also the "richest Chinese", and his wealth once exceeded that of Li Ka-shing.

As early as 1945, Tsai Wan-tsai and his three brothers came to Taipei to work hard, from selling vegetables and planting fruit trees to opening a soy sauce factory, and saved up their first pot of gold. Later, they entered the financial industry and founded the Cathay Group.

In 1979, the four brothers divided up their family property. Cai Wancai was the last one to enter the market and received the least amount of property. He only got the smallest share of Cathay Property Insurance and a few shares of Cathay Life Insurance. Many people regarded him as an "abandoned child", and he was helpless:

"I have no choice. My father doesn't make money in our family, but my brother. I have no right to demand an equal share of the property."

But unexpectedly, Tsai Wan-tsai later made a comeback. In the early 1990s, the Taiwan stock market soared, and Cathay Life's share price soared to more than NT$1,000 per share, becoming the veritable "stock king." Tsai Wan-tsai took the opportunity to sell his shares and established Fubon Financial Holdings.

Tsai Wan-tsai also trained his two sons early and sent them to the United States to study. The eldest son obtained a master's degree in law from Georgetown University and worked in a financial company in New York; after graduation, the second son also joined the Taipei branch of Bankers Trust and accumulated rich financial experience.

In 1981, the "big Dong" took the lead in returning to the family business. Three years later, the "second Dong" also joined the Fubon Group. The three of them worked together to develop Fubon Financial Holdings into a financial group with the most complete product line and the fastest expansion speed in Taiwan, surpassing their cousins, the "Cathay Tsai Family", and became the new overlord of Taiwan's financial industry.

In 2014, Tsai Wan-tsai passed away, and the "big brother" took over as the chairman of Fubon Financial Holding, and his younger brother assisted his brother. Four years later, the "big brother" was transferred to the chairman of Taiwan Mobile Group, and his younger brother became the new generation of Fubon Financial Holding.

It is said that wealthy families are prone to disputes, with brothers turning against each other and fighting for power and profit. But the Fubon Tsai family is different. There has never been any "internal fighting" in their family.

It turns out that when Tsai Wan-tsai was alive, he set a rule: every Monday, the two brothers must go home to eat and talk about work, which is the "Monday Agreement" of the Fubon Tsai family. The "Monday Agreement" is not only a meal, but also a bond that maintains the unity of the family.

Later, Tsai Wan-tsai simply followed the example of the Rockefeller family and put the family property into a family trust, allowing the two sons to "divide the work but not the family." So after Tsai Wan-tsai passed away, no matter who asked about "dividing the family," the brothers' answer was: "I haven't thought about it."

Today, "Da Dong" and "Er Dong" are almost 70 years old, and their next generation has begun to take over.

"Da Dong's" wife, Chen Ailing, was once a popular news anchor in Taiwan and won the Golden Bell Award. After the two got married, they had four children in six years. Among them, the eldest son, Cai Chengdao, was trained as an heir from the beginning.

After Cai Chengdao graduated from the University of Southern California, his father asked him to go out for experience. He first worked in a consulting company for two years, and later went to Tencent. In September 2018, Cai Chengdao went to the United States again to study for an MBA at the Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania, making full preparations for succession.

Cai Chengru, the only son of the second Dong, is an academic master. He graduated from the Wharton School of Business, which is ranked first in the United States, and worked at JPMorgan Chase in New York for two years.

Of course, his parents also paved the way for him. The second Dong has extensive connections in the business world. His wife, Weng Meihui, is known as "Sister Maggie". Even big names in Hong Kong and Taiwan such as Jay Chou and Leehom Wang are in awe of her.

Under the arrangement of his parents, Tsai Cheng-ru also began to take over. In June last year, he became a director of Fubon Financial Holding. In the eyes of the outside world, this marked the official start of the third generation of the Tsai family's succession to Fubon.

In addition, the "Sauce King" Lee Kum Kee family has also been rich for four generations. From the founding of Lee Kum Kee by Lee Kam Tong, to the rise of the second generation Lee Siu Nam, the third generation Lee Man Tat, to the current fourth generation in power, Lee Kum Kee has been passed down for 136 years.

However, Lee Kum Kee, which seemed to be going smoothly, also encountered two "family changes", mainly involving family infighting and brothers turning against each other. Fortunately, under the leadership of the third-generation heir Lee Man Tat, a "family constitution" was formulated and the details of training successors were worked out, which allowed the family business to be passed down to this day.

After Li Wenda passed away in 2021, his third son Li Huisen took over and became the fourth-generation head, and the other four children each performed their respective duties.

So, being born with a silver spoon in one's mouth can indeed make the rich Nth generation famous at a young age, but only by formulating strict rules, keeping brothers and sisters together, and uniting the family, can the huge wealth not fall into the situation of being squandered...