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Chen Tianqiao

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In this Chinese name, the family name is Chen.
Chen Tianqiao
陈天桥
Chen in 2015
Born1973 (age 50–51)
Xinchang County, Zhejiang, China
Alma materFudan University
Occupation(s)Co-founder of Shanda Group and Tianqiao and Chrissy Chen Institute
Organization(s)Member of the 11th and 12th National Committees of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference
Political partyChinese Communist Party
SpouseChrissy Luo

Chen Tianqiao (Chinese: 陈天桥; pinyin: Chén Tiānqiáo); born 1973) is a Chinese businessman who founded Shanda.

Early life and education

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Chen was born in Xinchang County, Zhejiang Province, China in 1973 and grew up near Shanghai with his younger brother Danian.[1][2] His father was an engineer and his mother was a middle school English teacher. He earned his bachelor's degree in economics from Fudan University in 1993.[3][4]

Career

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Chen started at the state-owned property developer Shanghai Lujiazui Group in 1994, holding management positions in the public relations office before becoming secretary to the chairman. In 1998, he became the vice director of the office of the president at Kinghing Trust & Investment before resigning in 1999.[3][4]

In 1999, Chen started the online gaming company Shanda with members of his family.[5][3] The company went on to become the largest Internet company by market capitalization in China in 2004.[6] That same year, Chen was second on the Hurun Report's "rich list",[7] was voted China Central Television's "Rising Business Star",[2] and was featured in MIT Technology Review's Innovators Under 35 list.[8]

Shanda Group went private in early 2012, with Chen, his wife, and his brother keeping a combined 57% stake.[3] In 2015, Chen, as the beneficial owner of Shanda Asset Management, acquired over 80,127 hectares of land in Oregon from Fidelity National Financial for US$85 million, making him one of the largest foreign owners of land in the United States.[9][10]

Tianqiao Chen and his family sold all their stakes in Shanda Games in November 2014,[citation needed] after which Shanda Group refocused on investing.[2]

With Chen remaining chairman and CEO, by early 2017 Shanda Group was the majority shareholder of Legg Mason, Lending Club, and Community Health Systems.[11][12][13][14] It also had property operations in China and North America and stakes in companies such as Sotheby's.[12] Shanda sold its stakes in Sotheby's in 2017 and then it sold its stake Legg Mason later that year, and then Chen resigned as vice-chairman of the Legg Mason board.[5][15] Chen has invested in the venture funds Propel(x) and Ubiquity Ventures.[16]

Ranked on various rich lists,[4][17] Chen personally had $4 billion in net value in 2017 and was ranked as the 93rd richest person in China, according to the Hurun Report.[18][19]

In 2018, Chen purchased 500,000 acres in Ontario.[20] The same year, the Committee of 100 gave Chen an award for Lifetime Achievement as Tech Entrepreneur.[21]

Politics

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According to China Youth Daily, Chen joined the Chinese Communist Party at age 18 and was elected to the central committee of Communist Youth League of China in Shanghai.[22] In 2008, Chen was appointed to the 11th National Committee of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference (CPPCC).[23][24] In 2013, Chen was appointed to the 12th National Committee of the CPPCC.[25][26]

Boards

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Chen is chairman of the Shanda Group,[11] and is also on the boards of various portfolio companies.[15][27]

Personal life

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Chen is married to Qianqian "Chrissy" Luo.[3] They moved from Shanghai to Singapore in 2009,[1][4] then from Singapore to the Bay Area of California in late 2017.[1][4][28] They are currently residents of Menlo Park, California.[29] In 2018, Chen bought a historic mansion built for Alice Gwynne Vanderbilt in 1881 on East 69th Street in the Upper East Side of Manhattan for $39 million.[30][31]

References

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  1. ^ a b c "Missing China mogul reappears in Singapore with US$1 billion for brain research". Today. Archived from the original on 14 January 2024. Retrieved 16 August 2017.
  2. ^ a b c "Chen Tianqiao: the billionaire funding brain research". Moneyweek. 8 September 2017. Archived from the original on 14 January 2024. Retrieved 27 May 2019. (published 09-09-20)
  3. ^ a b c d e "House of Flying Fingers". Forbes. Archived from the original on 2024-01-14. Retrieved 2019-05-27. (published 05-23-20)
  4. ^ a b c d e "The World's Billionaires: #828 Chen Tianqiao". Forbes. 3 October 2010. Archived from the original on 14 January 2024. Retrieved 24 June 2010.
  5. ^ a b "Chinese billionaire with ambitions to reshape investment models". Financial Times. Archived from the original on 2024-01-14. Retrieved 2017-02-08.(subscription required) (published 12-26-2016)
  6. ^ "Chinese donors fund studies into acceptance of death". The Financial Times. Archived from the original on 2024-01-14. Retrieved 2019-05-27. (published 12-06-20)
  7. ^ "If I was a lowly official they would be proud". The Guardian. 8 November 2004. Archived from the original on 14 January 2024. Retrieved 27 May 2019. (published 11-08-20)
  8. ^ "The Complete TR100". MIT Technology Review. Archived from the original on 2024-01-14. Retrieved 2019-05-27. (published 10-01-20)
  9. ^ Pendleton, Devon (January 8, 2024). "Chinese Billionaire Is Second-Biggest Foreign Owner of US Land". Bloomberg News. Archived from the original on 2024-01-14. Retrieved 12 January 2024.
  10. ^ O'Keefe, Eric (2024-01-08). "Tianqiao Chen Joins Land Report 100 with 198,000 Acres". The Land Report. Archived from the original on 2024-01-12. Retrieved 2024-01-13.
  11. ^ a b "Chinese Donors Step Up Giving to American Universities". The Chronicle of Higher Education. Archived from the original on 2019-05-27. Retrieved 2019-05-27. (published 12-21-20)
  12. ^ a b Rashiwala, Kalpana (Jan 20, 2017). "Shanda gaming co-founder buys GCB for $23 million". The Business Times. Archived from the original on January 14, 2024. Retrieved July 20, 2017.
  13. ^ "Billionaire's gamble on distressed US firm reflects growing confidence of Chinese investors". South China Morning Press. 25 January 2018. Archived from the original on 14 January 2024. Retrieved 27 May 2019. (published 01-25-2018)
  14. ^ "Barkholz, D. Chen's 22% CHS stake carries clout – with or without a board seat. Modern Healthcare". Modern Healthcare. 17 August 2017. (published 08-17-2017)
  15. ^ a b "Billionaire's gamble on distressed US firm reflects growing confidence of Chinese investors". SCMP. 25 January 2018. Archived from the original on 14 January 2024. Retrieved 27 May 2019. (published 01-25-20)
  16. ^ Barron's Archived 2024-01-14 at the Wayback Machine
  17. ^ "China's Richest: #10 Chen Tianqiao". Forbes. Archived from the original on 14 January 2024. Retrieved 24 June 2011. (2005)
  18. ^ "Hurun Report Releases China Rich List 2017 in Association with 36G". Hurun Report. Archived from the original on 2018-12-14. Retrieved 2018-12-14. (published 10-12-2018)
  19. ^ "Hurun Report Global Rich List 2014". Hurun Report. Archived from the original on 2014-08-31. Retrieved 2014-08-21. (published 2014)
  20. ^ Baumhardt, Alex (January 21, 2024). "Chinese billionaire owns hundreds of thousands of acres of Oregon timberland, report reveals". Oregon Public Broadcasting. Archived from the original on 2024-01-22. Retrieved 2024-01-22.
  21. ^ "Committee of 100 honors leaders who advanced U.S.-China relations". Asian American Press. Archived from the original on 2019-05-27. Retrieved 2019-05-27. (published 06-03-20)
  22. ^ "从团干部到企业家有多远" [How far is it from a league cadre to an entrepreneur?]. China Youth Daily (in Chinese). 13 November 2007. Archived from the original on 14 November 2007. Retrieved 2024-01-13.
  23. ^ "十一届全国政协委员职务和界别情况（7）" [Positions and sectors of members of the 11th CPPCC National Committee]. Government of China (in Chinese). February 27, 2008. Archived from the original on 3 March 2008. Retrieved 2024-01-12.
  24. ^ "第十一届全国政协委员名单" [List of members of the 11th National Committee of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference] (in Chinese). Xinhua News Agency. 3 March 2009. Archived from the original on 28 September 2013.
  25. ^ "中国人民政治协商会议第十二届全国委员会委员名单" [List of members of the 12th National Committee of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference]. People's Daily (in Chinese). June 26, 2014. Archived from the original on 2017-09-23. Retrieved 2024-01-12.
  26. ^ "中国人民政治协商会议第十二届全国委员会委员名单" [List of members of the 12th National Committee of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference]. Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference (in Chinese). February 26, 2014. Archived from the original on 2018-01-06. Retrieved 2024-01-12.
  27. ^ "BRIEF-Legg Mason appoints Tianqiao Chen and Robert Chiu to its board". Reuters. Archived from the original on 2017-08-18. Retrieved 2017-02-08. (published 01-31-2017)
  28. ^ "With A New Gift, Chinese Games Billionaire Takes Step To Treat Brain Diseases". Forbes. Archived from the original on 2020-09-25. Retrieved 2018-12-14. (published 11-02-2017)
  29. ^ "A Chinese Billionaire Is Using His Fortune to Unlock the Human Brain". Bloomberg. 21 August 2018. Archived from the original on 2024-01-14. Retrieved 2019-05-27. (published 12-21-2018)
  30. ^ Marino, Vivian (29 March 2018). "A Surge of High-Priced Closings, Including a Sale by Harvey Weinstein". The New York Times. Archived from the original on 9 November 2020. Retrieved 27 May 2019. (published 03-29-20)
  31. ^ "Online Gaming Billionaire Buys New York City 'Vanderbilt Mansion' For $39 Million". Archived from the original on 2024-01-14. Retrieved 2020-10-26. (published 03-15-18)
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