Zong Qinghou, richest man in China - Rupert Hoogewerf

  Hurun by Fantake via Flickr

Zong Qinghou, founder of China's largest soft drink producer Wahaha, has become the richest man of China in 2010, announced Rupert Hoogewerf or Hurun, maker of the China Rich List today, according to AFP. Zong not only gained financial, but also politically by taking on the French former partner Danone.
The announcement comes as China's rich gather at a dinner by US-billionaires Bill Gates and Warren Buffet in Beijing for their Chinese equals. Zong will be one of them.
According to AFP:

Zong, 65, leapt 11 places to top the Hurun Rich List, said Rupert Hoogewerf, founder of the Shanghai-based Hurun Report, which publishes the annual list of the richest Chinese with personal wealth of at least 150 million dollars.

Zong's climb up the rankings comes a year after French food giant Danone ended its long-standing feud with Wahaha, by agreeing to sell its 51 percent stake in their joint ventures.

Danone had accused Zong of breaching an agreement after he set up an entire production and distribution network in parallel to the French firm's joint ventures with Wahaha.

The whole list will only be published in October.

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Rupert Hoogewerf or Hurun is a speaker at the China Speakers Bureau. Do you need him at your meeting or conference? Do get in touch.

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