Asia Sentinel

Rags to riches to rags to riches to rags to riches

In a new China largely preoccupied with getting and spending after decades and perhaps centuries of poverty, Yu Panglin, an 87-year-old real estate developer and hotelier, stands out as a welcome anomaly.

Yu, according to a publication called th Hurun Report, is the most generous philanthropist in China, with 2007 donations totaling US$420 million, more than double the US$158 million given by Zhu Mengyi, a real estate developer, in second place. Yu has given HK$20-30 billion to charity, including schools, universities, hospitals, disaster relief and a program that has provided free cataract operations to 138,000 poor people.

He is wary of giving money to China's government to be handed on, and if he were in charge, would scrap the country's budding manned space program and the upcoming Shanghai Exhibition, meant to be the country's latest showcase for the world.

"In China, most charitable money is given to the government and much is lost before it reaches those for whom it is intended. I want to be an example and inspire other business people to donate," said Yu in an interview in the penthouse of his five-star Panlin Hotel in Shenzhen, his principal residence. "In the past five years, private donations by mainland businessmen have increased more than ten-fold."

A Hollywood scriptwriter couldn't have written Yu's biography, from poverty to riches on the streets of Shanghai to disgrace at the hands of the Cultural Revolution to being wiped out in the stock market to ultimate restoration of his wealth. He was born in 1922, the son of a businessman, in a poor village in Hunan, the province of Chairman Mao. To escape poverty, he went in 1945 to Shanghai, where he pulled rickshaws and sold goods on a street stall.

In 1953, he was arrested for being ‘a runaway landlord' and sentenced to three years of reform through labor in Anhui. He won an appeal against the sentence, saying that he was not a landlord. On his release, he returned to Shanghai and showed a police officer a letter from a friend in Hong Kong. "I have no job and no home. Please let me go to Hong Kong." The officer took pity on him and approved the application. "I had no party affiliation and nothing against me."

In 1957, he went to Hong Kong. With no money and connections and speaking neither Cantonese nor English, he earned HK$80-100 a month sweeping the streets, working on building sites and odd jobs. He didn't drink, smoke, gamble or visit prostitutes and squirreled his money.

A Shanghainese in a real estate firm gave him a job as manager and he began to learn the trade. Then he went into business on his own, buying and selling homes, and grew his fortune.

In 1973, he mortgaged everything and gambled it on the stock market. "I bought everything, including junk stocks, but the market turned against me and I lost everything." The loss made him stop buying stocks -- and ban his staff from doing so -- for the next 36 years. That is until March this year, when he purchased HSBC, Sun Hung Kai and Cheung Kong shares. "The chance is too good to miss."

Comments (4)

Subscribe to this comment's feed

Dynastic ambitions
written by Dynas Tee, April 13, 2009

Chinese tends to leave everything to their offsprings. Most progenies however will live a wasted lives. More people should be encouraged to be philanthrophists by making this aim the most noble value in our culture.

• 
• +9
• 
• 

God Bless Yu
written by Ronaldo, April 14, 2009

Yu is a very good man. He is a gem, very hard to find. But he has got it right. He knows he cannot take his wealth to his grave, and has chosen to do good, and serve the people, just like what our Lord Jesus Christ taught us. I am sure he will go to heaven even though he has professed no religion. But he is in fact doing exactly what God want us to do.

• 
• -1
• 
• 

wow power leveling
written by wow power leveling, April 15, 2009

Gold key link for( http://www.wowgold-powerleveling.com/ )the law by(http://www.wowpowerleveling.me/)all

• 
• -2
• 
• 

Believe in RMB not god or jesus
written by Shi fatong, April 16, 2009

Yu's hard earned riches has nothing to do with god or jesus. It 's centuries old Chinese hard work , thrift, humility and respect for others. Americans believe in god and the country is nearing bankruptcy. Better put your trust in the RMB.

• 
• +0
• 
• 

Name

Email

Website

Title

Comment

smaller | bigger

Subscribe via email (Registered users only)

Write the displayed characters

Add Comment