Xiaojuan Zhang: The Billionaire Businesswoman Behind The Chinese Tech Empire

Overview

Xiaojuan Zhang is one of China’s most successful businesswomen, with a net worth of over $14 billion. She has built a reputation as a savvy investor and entrepreneur, playing an instrumental role in the growth of several tech companies that have come to define the Chinese tech landscape. Zhang is the co-founder and CEO of the China Literature platform, which is the largest online literature platform in China, and has had a phenomenal impact on the country’s publishing industry. She is also the executive director of the social media giant Tencent Holdings, which is one of the world’s largest technology companies.

Early Life and Education

Born in 1966 in China’s Fujian province, Zhang grew up in a middle-class family. Her father worked as a government official, while her mother was a housewife. Zhang attended the prestigious Peking University, where she studied economics and management. After completing her undergraduate degree, she worked briefly at a government agency, before returning to Peking University to pursue a master’s degree in economics.

Career and Achievements

Zhang began her career in the late 1980s, working for the Chinese government’s Ministry of Finance. She then moved on to work for several successful tech startups in China, including Shenzhen Information Technology Co. Ltd. and Sina Corp. In the mid-1990s, she co-founded Sohu.com, which quickly became one of China’s most popular web portals.

In 2003, Zhang became the CEO of the internet service provider Tencent, which had just launched its popular instant messaging app, QQ. Under her leadership, Tencent went on to become one of the most successful tech companies in China, with a market capitalization of over $570 billion.

In 2015, Zhang co-founded China Literature, which quickly became one of China’s largest and most successful online literature platforms. The platform has over 200 million monthly active users and hosts over 10 million publications.

Zhang’s success has been widely acknowledged, and she has won numerous awards for her contributions to the tech industry. In 2018, she was listed on Forbes’ Billionaires list, and in 2020, she was named one of Time Magazine’s 100 most influential people in the world.

Personal Life

Zhang is known for being fiercely private about her personal life, and little is known about her outside of her work. She is married, and has two children.

Profile