The boss of the conglomerate chinese HNA, Wang Jian, has died at age 57 on Tuesday, after an accidental fall in France, where he was the tourism, leaving behind him a large conglomerate present in the tourism, logistics and air transport. The billionaire lost his life in the village of Bonnieux (Vaucluse), in the Luberon, according to the French gendarmes: “He had climbed up on a parapet in height to have their picture taken, and he fell,” they explained, adding that firefighters were unable to revive him.
According to a source close to the dossier, this great chinese boss had wanted to see the panorama on a wall. To achieve this, it has gained momentum and has been swept away in its course, making a fall of 10 metres. Brigade and the local gendarmerie was in charge of the investigation, which is moving towards an accident. “We mourn the loss of a leader is exceptionally gifted and a model, in which the vision and values will continue to serve as a guide for all those who have had the chance to know him,” said AST in a press release, adding that Mr. Wang was on a business trip in France.
The fortune of this great patron very discreet is estimated to be $ 1.7 billion by u.s. magazine Forbes. Mr. Wang was a specialist as soon as his studies in the civil aviation University of China. In the early 90’s, he participated in the foundation of the airline Hainan Airlines.
HNA, a “rhino grey”
According to the New York Times, it is through a collaborative, long kept secret with his younger brother, Wang Wei, who was selling services and equipment to the Hainan Airlines, that Wang Jian has transformed a small regional company into a large conglomerate. Today, HNA, which is developed in the logistics and tourism in particular, is perceived as a “rhino grey”, in the words of the chinese press, that is to say, one of these companies in the crosshairs of the plan for their debt concern. In fact, AST has multiplied its investments abroad, becoming especially in may 2017, the largest shareholder of the German bank Deutsche Bank, with 9.9%, followed by the family of the Emirate of Qatar. Similarly, in October 2016, the conglomerate had announced the acquisition of a quarter of the capital, Hilton hotels, 6.25 billion. HNA has spent at least $ 50 billion in the past two years in investments, shares and other equity, and not without vehement controversy on the opacity of its complex structures of ownership.
HNA entered the capital of several foreign airlines: Aigle Azur (France), Virgin Australia (Australia), TAP (Portugal) or Azul (Brazil). In logistics, he placed a hand on switzerland’s Gategroup, a provider of on-board services for the air transport. It was also unveiled in 2016 for the purchase of the branch aircraft leasing group american CIT for $ 10 billion. By the end of 2017, HNA announced that its total indebtedness amounted to approximately 638 billion yuan (81.5 billion), up 36% compared to the end of 2016. Taking into account all of the entities that it controls, one could arrive at a debt of about 1,000 billion yuan, according to the financial agency Bloomberg. At the request of the chinese government, HNA strives to make disposals and to opt out of costly real estate assets to bail out its cash.
