Ding Lei

William Ding
Native name 丁磊
Born Ding Lei
(1971-10-01) 1 October 1971
Ningbo, Zhejiang, China
Residence Hangzhou, China[1]
Guangzhou, China
Nationality Chinese
Education UESTC
Occupation Founder and CEO of NetEase
Net worth US$18.3 billion (February 2018)[2]
Spouse(s) Wang Xunfang (m. 2006)

Ding Lei (Chinese: 丁磊; pinyin: Dīng Lěi; born 1 October 1971), also known as William Ding, is a Chinese billionaire businessman, and the founder and CEO of NetEase (163.com).

Ding made significant contributions to the development of computer networks in mainland China. In late 2016, Ding was looking into investing in the property sector, and travelled to Zimbabwe in December, and to the United Kingdom.[3][4] As of February 2018, Ding's fortune was estimated to be $18.3 billion. In 2017, he was ranked at #52 on Forbes's billionaires list.[5]

Early life

Ding Lei was born in Fenghua, Ningbo, Zhejiang Province. He graduated from Chengdu College of Electronic Science and Technology (now University of Electronic Science and Technology of China) and obtained a bachelor's degree.

Career

After graduation he first worked in a local state department in Ningbo as an engineer, and then he went to Guangzhou and worked for Sybase there. He founded NetEase and became the richest individual in Chinese mainland in the year of 2003 (7.6 billion yuan). According to the Hurun Report 2013, his net worth is estimated to be $5.2 billion.[6]

In 2012, it was confirmed that Ding branched NetEase's activities out into pork production.[7] The pig farm is centered around technology and environmental sustainability, and is not meant to become a major arm of the company.[8]

In May 2017, venture capital firm Sinovation Ventures, US-based Meituan-Dianping, and Alibaba competitor JD invested a total of US$23 million into the farm.[8]

References

  1. ↑ 丁磊：我性格直接包容性也差 Retrieved 2017-01-016
  2. ↑ "William Ding". Forbes.
  3. ↑ "Chinese billonaire expected in Byo". The Chronicle. 2015-12-15. Retrieved 2016-01-02.
  4. ↑ "鮭非為源". Hurun.net. Archived from the original on 2015-12-31. Retrieved 2016-01-02.
  5. ↑ "William Ding". Forbes.
  6. ↑ "鮭非為源". Hurun.net. Archived from the original on 2015-12-31. Retrieved 2016-01-02.
  7. ↑ "Netease Expanding into the Pork Business…Wait, What?". Tech in Asia. Retrieved 2017-06-15.
  8. 1 2 "In China, a pig farm just got tens of millions of bucks in VC funding". Tech in Asia.
  • Article on Ding Lei, China Today (2004)
  • "Lei William Ding: China's Richest Man". China.org.
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