Huang Youlong

Huang Youlong, originally from Hubei Wuhan, was born in Longtang Village, Yongzhou City, Hunan Province. During his youth, he was introverted and spoke little, having attended Longtang Village Elementary School in Yongzhou, before leaving home to follow his father.

In 1993, at the age of 17, Huang Youlong began his career in Shenzhen, where he served as a driver for the former mayor of Shenzhen, Xu Zongheng. In December 2001, at just 25 years old, he purchased a 183-square-meter commercial property in Shenzhen International Cultural Plaza for 2.34 million yuan. That same year, he established Shenzhen Dongrunda Industrial Development Co., Ltd., holding a 90% stake. During his management of this company, Huang Youlong also founded the Guangzhou Zengcheng Jinyizi Hot Spring Resort Hotel.

In 2005, Huang Youlong's second sister, Huang Li, bought shares in Jinyizi Hotel, which she transferred to her friend Wen Cunzhi in 2008. Subsequently, he engaged in similar share transfers involving Shenzhen Huanniri Industrial Co., Ltd. (later renamed Huanniri Investment Co., Ltd.).

In 2014, Huang Youlong attended events related to Alibaba’s U.S. listing. Later that year, his wife and he invested nearly 3.1 billion Hong Kong dollars to acquire a 9.18% stake in Alibaba Pictures (stock code 1060.HK), becoming its second-largest shareholder. In May 2015, he subscribed to shares of Ruidong Group along with Shi Yuhua, Ma Yun, Yu Feng, and others; on its debut trading day in June, Ruidong Group’s stock soared over 150%.

In 2016, controlled by Huang Youlong, Shunlong Holdings (stock code 00361.HK) announced a HKD 236 million acquisition of Lucky Fountain Group. The same year, the couple’s controlling interest in Longwei Media attempted a high-value purchase of Wanjia Culture (later renamed Xiangyuan Culture) for 3.06 billion RMB, but due to funding structures and high leverage issues, the deal ultimately fell through.

On April 16, 2018, the China Securities Regulatory Commission imposed a five-year market ban on Huang Youlong and fined him 300,000 RMB.

Regarding his personal life, Huang had a relatively ordinary early life. In April 2008, he met Hong Kong Miss Chinatown International winner Ye Cuirui, but they split in August of the same year. In 2009, he married actress Zhao Wei. Their eldest daughter was born on April 11, 2010. On February 2, 2011, Zhao Wei posted on Weibo about their vacation in the Maldives. On December 28, 2024, Zhao Wei issued a public statement announcing her divorce from Huang Youlong.

In terms of honors, Huang Youlong and his wife appeared on the 2016 Hurun Global Rich List and ranked 45th on the 2019 Hurun Rich List.

In social welfare, at the end of February 2020, Huang donated 15,000 N95 masks to regions in Yongzhou, Yueyang, and Pingjiang in Hunan Province. In business activities, on June 5, 2014, he appeared at a joint press conference between Evergrande Group and Alibaba Group, serving as a prominent Alibaba Board member.

Huang Youlong has faced multiple regulatory controversies, including a five-year market ban in 2017 due to the Wanjia Culture acquisition, as well as subsequent debt disputes. In 2021 and 2023, he drew further attention for overdue loans and rental liabilities, with total debts amounting to several hundred million Hong Kong dollars.