China’s Dalian Wanda Calls Rumor of Chairman’s Death Fake
China’s Dalian Wanda Calls Rumor of Chairman’s Death Fake
(Bloomberg) -- Dalian Wanda Group Co. has hit back at an online rumor that chairman Wang Jianlin -- once the richest man in Asia -- has died, saying he led a meeting on Monday.
Wanda’s statement included a photo of Wang chairing the gathering that it said was about how the company can innovate. A representative for the entertainment-to-property conglomerate told Bloomberg News the rumors were false and had been reported to police.
ByteDance Ltd.’s news and information platform Toutiao said in a statement it banned a blogger that fabricated a rumor Sunday evening about the death of a famous businessman, without giving the exact name of either person.
Wang, 67, led Dalian Wanda during a period that saw it binge on easy credit to buy foreign trophy assets, including the Spanish soccer club Atletico Madrid. Later his indebted company started disposing of assets when the Chinese government ordered a crackdown on credit-fueled expansion.
His wealth has shrunk to $8.6 billion now, down from a peak of $46 billion in 2015, according to the Bloomberg Billionaires Index.
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With assistance from Bloomberg