Pan Shiyi
Pan Shiyi (Chinese: ???; pinyin: P?n Shíyì; born November 14, 1963) is a Chinese business magnate. Presently, he is the Chairman of SOHO China, the largest prime office real estate developer in China acclaimed for developing iconic landmark buildings in Beijing and Shanghai. He co-founded SOHO China with his wife Zhang Xin in 1995. The couple has been described by The Times of London as “China’s most visible and flamboyant property tycoons”.[1] Together with his wife Zhangxin, he currently ranks as 32nd richest person in China, and 460th richest person in the world, according to the Hurun Report Global Rich List 2014.[2]
Pan Shiyi is known as a vanguard in China for spearheading a new generation of private entrepreneurship. The projects he has undertaken as Chairman of SOHO China have achieved tremendous commercial success, largely thanks to his flair for marketing and foresight in anticipating the needs of Chinese investors and small and medium-sized enterprises. Moreover, his distinct way of approaching life and work with optimism, levity, and candor has made him a public role model and a star in the eyes of the media.
Pan Shiyi was also one of the first proponents of the digital revolution and social media in China. He has been successful in promoting the SOHO brand through his personal blog and“weibo”. At present his “weibo”, the Chinese version of “Twitter”, has over 17 million followers. Pan regularly uses video broadcasts and online chat and has been a keynote speaker at events such as World Economic Forum, Asia Leadership Forum and Boao Forum for Asia, to create lively forums for public discourse on the progress of China’s economic development, industry trends and broader social issues.
In China, Pan Shiyi’s entrepreneurial accomplishments have led him to become widely regarded as a modern day rags to riches success story. Pan Shiyi was born in an impoverished rural village in Tianshui in Gansu Province in western China in 1963. He graduated from the Hebei Technical College of Petroleum Profession in 1982, later working at the former Ministry of Petroleum, until he decided in 1987 to venture to Shenzhen and Hainan to embark upon a career in real estate. In 1992, he co-founded Beijing Vantone Co., Ltd., a developer now listed on the Shanghai Stock Exchange.
Mr. Pan was honored as one of the “Top Ten Influential Figures in Real Estate Industry” by sina.com in 2004 and 2006, and one of the “Top Ten Influential Figures in Real Estate Industry” by sohu.com in 2005. In 2008, Mr. Pan was named China Entrepreneur of the Year by Ernst & Young in the Real Estate category. He was selected as “2009 Real Estate Person of the Year” by Sina.com.
Pan Shiyi and his wife, Zhang Xin, are members of the Bahá’í Faith since 2005.[3]
Pan Shiyi is deeply involved in philanthropy through the charity organization he co-founded with Zhang Xin, SOHO China Foundation, the mission of which is to advance education as a means for alleviating poverty. In 2014, the SOHO China Foundation launched the SOHO China Scholarships, a USD 100 million initiative supporting financial aid for Chinese students at leading international universities.
· What I Took a Life to Find (2008)
· Childhood Candy is Sweet (2008,Published in Taiwan)
· Pan Shiyis Blog (2005)
· Chop Suey (2004)
· Go West 25o, PhotoAlbum (2003)
· The Teacup Is Full, Collectionsof Essays (2001)
· ComplainAbout Pan Shiyi, Criticize SOHO New Town (2001)
· Selected as “The Most Influential Person in the Real Estate Industry in 2011 in China” by Sina’s Leju.com, 2011;
· Selected as “2009 RealEstate Person of the Year” by Sina.com,2010;
· Honored as “China RealEstate Top 10 Individual of All Time” at the 10th Annual ChinaInternational Real Estate & Arch-tech Fair (CIHAF) Awards,2008;
· Honored as Ernst & YoungEntrepreneur of the Year China 2008 as winner of Real Estate category,2008;
· Selected as deputy to Beijing’s People’s Congress, 2007;
· Honored as a “Model IncomeTax Payer” by the Beijing Taxation Administration Bureau, 2007;
· Boao Forum for Asia, speaker and moderator, since 2002;
· Asia Business Council, member,2006;
· Named one of the “Top TenInfluential Figures in the Real Estate Industry” in China by Sina.com,2003–06;
· Named one of “25 MostInfluential Business Leaders in China,” FORTUNE (China), 2005
· World Economic Forum, speaker2003-2004;
· Asia Leadership Forum, speaker2004;
· Named Asia´s Under-50 Movers and Shakers by Asia Inc, along with Zhang Xin, 2003
In China’s Internet, Pan Shiyi (also as Pan) is an internet slang as well as a unit use for descriping real estates’ prices. 1 Pan Shiyi is 1000 RMB per square metre.