Zhang Zhenxin
| Zhang Zhenxin | |||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Traditional Chinese | 張振新 | ||||||||||||
| Simplified Chinese | 张振新 | ||||||||||||
| |||||||||||||
Zhang Zhenxin (Chinese: 张振新; March 1971 – 18 September 2019) was a Chinese businessman. He founded UCF Holdings Group in 2003 and grew it into a financial conglomerate which controlled three publicly listed companies, including Chong Sing Holdings in Hong Kong. However, Chong Sing fell into debt trouble after its unsuccessful forays into peer-to-peer lending and cryptocurrencies, and the trading of its stock was suspended in July 2019. Zhang died in London two months later from alcohol-related diseases.
Early life and education
Zhang was born in March 1971 in Tongliao, Inner Mongolia, China.[1] In September 1992, he entered Dongbei University of Finance and Economics and graduated in July 1996 with a bachelor's degree in economics. He returned to the university in September 2001, as a graduate student, and earned his master's degree in economics in July 2004.[2]
Career
Zhang served as general manager of the Dalian branch of Shanghai Wanguo Securities.[1] He founded UCF Holdings Group (先锋控股集团) in 2003, a small financial company that provided guarantees and leasing services in Dalian.[3] The company expanded into other financial services including banking, insurance, securities, and fund management. UCF also started a financial technology company, NCF Group, which became listed on Nasdaq through a reverse merger with Hunter Maritime Acquisition Corporation, although it was later delisted from Nasdaq and traded over-the-counter.[4]
In 2013, Zhang began acquiring shares in Credit China Holdings Limited, a company listed on the Hong Kong Stock Exchange.[5] He later accumulated a controlling stake and renamed the company as Chong Sing Holdings Limited (中新控股). Chong Sing made a slew of acquisitions, including the peer-to-peer lender WeShare in 2016.[5] In January 2017, it spent US$30 million to purchase a 6.4% stake in the bitcoin mining company BitFury Group.[3]
In 2015, Zhang purchased an 80% share of the five-star Castlemartyr Resort in County Cork, Ireland, a few months after Kanye West and Kim Kardashian spent part of their honeymoon there.[6]
UCF made headlines in early 2017 when it offered HK$7.1 billion to acquire the insurance company Hong Kong Life. However, the deal collapsed in October 2018 and UCF forfeited its HK$710 million deposit.[3] UCF fell into debt trouble in the second half of 2018, when the Chinese government cracked down on P2P lending, and partly because of losses from its cryptocurrency investments.[4] UCF Pay, a subsidiary of Chong Sing Holdings, was found to have embezzled client funds and had its operations suspended.[4] The share price of Chong Sing fell by 88% in 2019, before trading was suspended in July.[5]
Death
On 18 September 2019, Zhang died at Chelsea and Westminster Hospital in London, England, aged 48. UCF did not disclose the news until 5 October, and said the reason for the delay was because the company was "going through a special period of time". The causes of his death were multiple organ failure related to alcohol dependence and pancreatitis.[3]
References
- ^ a b Hao Xinyao 郝昕瑶 (5 October 2019). "先锋系创始人张振新异国身亡 百亿资产窟窿难填". Sina. Retrieved 11 October 2019.
- ^ Liu Qianlin 刘茜琳 (5 October 2019). "48岁神秘资本大佬张振新在英国去世，先锋系何以陷入败局？". The Paper. Retrieved 11 October 2019.
- ^ a b c d Xie Yu (7 October 2019). "Chinese tycoon dies aged 48 with his empire swamped by debt". South China Morning Post. Retrieved 11 October 2019.
- ^ a b c Hu Yue; Guo Yingzhe (7 October 2019). "Troubled Financial Group Confirms Secretive Tycoon is Dead". Caixin Global. Retrieved 11 October 2019.
- ^ a b c Denise Wee; Blake Schmidt (7 October 2019). "Secretive Chinese Tycoon Targeted by Short-Sellers Dies". Bloomberg. Retrieved 11 October 2019.
- ^ Carey, Brian (24 February 2019). "Castlemartyr's Chinese owner faces huge losses". The Sunday Times. ISSN 0956-1382. Retrieved 11 October 2019.