19 Facts About Xu Ming

Xu Ming was a Chinese entrepreneur and billionaire.

Xu Ming was the founder of the conglomerate Dalian Shide Group, and the chairman of Dalian Shide FC, China's top football club in the 2000s.

Xu Ming was born in Dalian, Liaoning Province, Northeast China.

Xu Ming held a master's degree from the Shenyang Institute of Aeronautical Engineering and an MBA from Dongbei University of Finance and Economics.

Xu Ming developed a close relationship with Bo Xilai, who was the mayor of Dalian from 1992 to 2000.

Xu Ming expanded into the plastics industry in August 1995, establishing Shide Plastics Industry Corporation.

Xu Ming further expanded the company in 1998 with an investment of 600 million yuan.

Xu Ming is one of the world's major producers of chemical building materials.

Xu Ming was well known as the owner and chairman of Dalian Shide FC, formerly China's top football club which dominated the Chinese Jia-A League in the 2000s.

Xu Ming bought the team in 2000 from Wang Jianlin, the billionaire real-estate developer in Dalian.

Xu Ming reportedly tried to sell the club for 600 million yuan in 2009, without success.

Xu Ming curried favor with the families of China's government elite.

Xu Ming cared for the parents and children of powerful officials, and had especially close relationships with the families of Bo Xilai and Wen Jiabao, China's former premier and one of Bo's main rivals.

Xu Ming dated Wen's daughter Wen Ruchun, and was close to his son Wen Yunsong.

In 2002, the Far Eastern Economic Review reported that Xu Ming was the son-in-law of Wen Jiabao, but Xu publicly denied it.

Xu Ming was shown testifying on state television, having lost a significant amount of weight.

On 4 December 2015, Xu Ming was reported to have died of a heart attack, aged 44.

Xu Ming died in a Wuhan prison where he was held, less than a year before he was scheduled to be released.

Xu Ming's body was cremated within days and returned to his hometown of Dalian.