China’s Millionaires of the Past

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Feb. 6 – Every Friday afternoon we feature the best weekly article from China Expat that bridges the gap between China business and culture. We hope you’ll find it interesting and enjoyable.

China’s Old Time Millionaires
Liu Yongxing of Shanghai’s East Hope Group is worth three billion. Wong Kwong Wu, owner of Gome Electrical Appliances, is worth two point seven. “Ah, Chinese prosperity,” you think, “all made possible by finally opening up to the enlightened market practices of the West.” Before economic assimilation, there was a good forty-five years of anti-capitalist nonsense, preceded by five millennia of wretched peasants, the humble merchants who sold them wares, and the blood-sucking officials who made upward mobility a cruel fantasy.

In actuality, Chinese businessmen were sitting on mountains of coin back when Celtic tribesmen were only as rich as the number of bronze rings they could fit on their arms. Then as it always shall be, influence peddling and backroom deals greased the wheels of wealth. But astute business minds and commercial strategy were just as important, as you can see from the ranks of ancient China’s mega-rich.

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