Zhang Xin – the fearless woman who built Beijing

Zhang Xin is the co-founder of SOHO China, the largest real estate developer in China. She’s worth over $3 billion in net worth.

Zhang Xin was born in China in 1965. At 14, she left for Hong Kong with her parents. At 19, she decided to leave Hong Kong for England to pursue her education by herself with the savings she saved from working at a factory. She spoke very little English at first. She took English classes, worked part-time to support herself, and got herself into Cambridge university. After graduation, she worked for a company in England, which was later bought by Goldman Sachs. Zhang Xin was transferred to New York.

Zhang Xin’s mind and heart was with China. She left Goldman Sachs in 1994 to go back to Beijing (her parents still lived in Hong Kong). She got married to her husband and together they founded SOHO China. The rest is the history.

What made Zhang Xin successful is her daring to take on projects no one wanted to take on. When people saw risks, she saw opportunities and excitement.