Inslita dead of a Chinese tycoon :: El Litoral – News – Santa Fe – Argentina

Wang Jian. Photo: Digital capture

El Litoral / dpa

The chairman of Chinese HNA business group, Wang Jian, died in an accident in France, reported today the company.

Wang, 57, He suffered serious injuries during a fall and died Tuesday, explained the company in his official WeChat account, without giving further details.

The French gendarmerie confirmed that Wang died after a fall Tuesday in Bonnieux, in the natural park of Luberon, in the south of the country. He apparently tried to climb a wall to "enjoy the scenery", but it took too much momentum and fell from a height of 10 meters on the other side, said a door Floor-.

"It is possible that he wants to take a picture or be photographed," he added. Early evidence suggests that it was an accidental drop, he added.

The public channel France Bleu had previously reported that a man whose description matched that of Wang died after falling off a wall while trying to take pictures of the landscape . The man was with a tour group, he was 57 years old and was "the owner of an airline," he said.

The HNA group is from the Haian airline, founded in 1993. It is ranked 170 on the Fortune 500 list of the world's largest companies and has activities in aviation, tourism and financial services . He is one of the major shareholders of Deutsche Bank Deutsche Bank, of which he holds 7.8%.

In recent years, the group has made major investments in the world of business and real estate in the world, for an amount of $ 30 billion (25,750 million euros) .

However, he has also accumulated many debts that he is now trying to relieve. To this end, in recent months, it has sold badets worth $ 14.5 billion, according to the "South China Morning Post", including shares of the Hilton Worldwide hotel chain.

Wang Jian was a key figure in the expansion of the group, which he founded with Chen Feng, and was chairman of the board of directors of HNA International. The company's shareholding structure is opaque, but Wang is thought to have 15%.

"We regret the loss of an exceptionally talented leader and an example whose vision and values ​​continue to be a beacon for all who have had the chance to know him", said HNA in his statement.

Wang studied at the Civil Aviation University of China and obtained a Master of Business Administration (MBA) at the Maastricht Business School in the Netherlands. With Chen Feng, he founded Haian Airlines, currently the fourth largest airline in China and the flagship of the HNA group.

The delicate situation in which the conglomerate is also linked to the new economic policy of the Chinese government. For years, Chinese state banks have voluntarily financed the purchases of Chinese companies overseas by injecting billions of dollars.

However, this policy ended abruptly because of economic risks. Now, the government wants Chinese companies to focus on the purchase of high technology abroad, which can boost the country's industrial upgrading.

Companies like HNA, concentrated primarily in the real estate and business sector, have seen their capital flow cut. Real estate giant Wanda and insurer Anbang have also been affected.