In January of 2021, Zhong Shanshan, founder and chairman of China’s largest bottled water producer, Nongfu Spring, became the richest man in Asia and the sixth richest in the world, with a USD 92 billion net worth, according to Forbes’ Real Time Billionaires List.
Low profile entrepreneur Zhong surpassed other Chinese billionaires like Tencent’s CEO Ma Huateng and Alibaba’s founder Jack Ma, after his beverage firm successfully debuted on the Hong Kong Stock Exchange on September 8, 2020. Nongfu Spring’s share price (HK:9633) surged as much as 85% higher than its initial IPO price, allowing the firm to raise USD 1.1 billion.
What’s remarkable has been that Zhong’s path to the top came from an empire built on packaged drinks such as water, tea, and fruit juices, rather than tech, or real estate, like other Chinese giants. Watch our video to learn more.
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