Background
Liu Bo was born in 1964, China.
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Bo Liu
Edit Profile波 刘
Education
Liu was said to be a virtual ‘genius’, entering college early, and studying at Peking where he earned a PhD in philosophy. In 1988, 24-year-old Liu was still an assistant editor-in-chief of a small local newspaper in Zhuzhou, Hunan. It was in Hainan Province that Liu first got his real taste of financial success when he invested in real estate programs, founded a medical equipment supply company, and made strong ties with local banks that were to become the foundations for his future success.
Career
Liu set up the Hainan Chengcheng Enterprise Group in 1995 and worked as its chairman and president. He bought a failing company as a shell, buying almost 21 percent of the total shares in 1998, renaming it the Chengcheng Culture Development Group, and becoming its board chairman. Liu refocused his business strategies towards the cultural and media sectors, where his career would take off. In 1999, after he gained the rights as agent for the bestselling magazine Hope, Chengcheng was named the first stock in the culture and media industry. Within eight weeks, the Chengcheng share price had sky-rocketed from RMB6.47 yuan to 24.38 yuan, bringing Liu to the forefront as an up and coming Chinese businessman.
Before it was sold to the Hunan Publishing Group, Chengcheng had total assets of 660 million yuan ($79.7 million), and net assets of 390 million yuan ($47.1 million). The company was involved in over a dozen business operations including publishing, media, culture, printing, real estate, education, travel, medicine, and advertising, all things that Liu had touched on earlier in his career. In cultural and media circles, no other company came close to matching its fame or notoriety. The company even had offices in the World Trade Center in New York as well as many locations worldwide.
Managing such a large company proved to be beyond Liu’s capability. One of Liu’s acquaintances described him as a ‘giant in strategy but a dwarf in tactics’ (Ding, 2003). Although Liu had invested in over 40 different newspapers and magazines, he received very little profit in return a situation that led to embezzlement charges against him. In 2001, Liu tried to find a new partner to join Chengcheng, but negotiations failed, ending Liu’s dream of issuing additional shares. After much controversy, the investigation into Chengcheng’s enterprises became more focused. Liu was alleged to have embezzled Chengcheng capital and to have transferred much of this money to his company in Tokyo.
In 2002, falling short of working capital and defaulting on hundreds of loans to banks throughout China, Liu had to sell an estimated 12.2 percent stake of Chengcheng to Hunan Publishing Group, marking the end of his brief business career in China. After more allegations were proved, Liu fled to avoid the penalty for his crimes.
Education
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1984