Tsai Wan-lin (; 10 November 1924 – 27 September 2004) was a Taiwanese businessman who, at the peak of his wealth in 1996, was considered to be the fifth richest person in the world, with a family net worth of
US$12.2 billion. At the time of his death in 2004, he was the richest man in Taiwan with a fortune of US$4.6 billion (
NT$156.3 billion), ranked 94th worldwide. He founded the
Lin Yuan Group
Lin or LIN may refer to:
People
*Lin (surname) (normally ), a Chinese surname
*Lin (surname) (normally 蔺), a Chinese surname
* Lin (''The King of Fighters''), Chinese assassin character
*Lin Chow Bang, character in Fat Pizza
Places
*Lin, Iran, ...
, a large
banking and
insurance group.
He was born into a poor
farmer's family in Chikunan Town, Chikunan District,
Shinchiku Prefecture,
Japanese-era Taiwan (modern-day
Zhunan
Zhunan Township is an urban township in northern Miaoli County, Taiwan. Its city centre forms a continuous urban area with Toufen.
Name
Literally, ''Zhúnán'' () means "bamboo south" but in this context, ''zhú'' is short for "Hsinchu". Th ...
,
Miaoli County
Miaoli County (Mandarin Pinyin: ''miáo lì xiàn''; Hakka PFS: ''Mèu-li̍t-yen''; Hokkien POJ: ''Biâu-le̍k-koān'' or ''Miâu-le̍k-koān'') is a county in western Taiwan. Miaoli is adjacent with Hsinchu County and Hsinchu City to the nort ...
). Tsai started out in
Taipei by selling vegetables and soybeans with his brothers as a child.
With one of his brothers Tsai joined Taipei's Tenth Credit Cooperative in 1960.
Two years later, they founded
Cathay Life Insurance, which at the time of his death was the largest life insurance company in Taiwan.
[ Tenth Credit Cooperative was eventually transferred to Tsai Wan-lin's nephew ]Tsai Chen-chou
Tsai Chen-chou (; 13 September 1946 – 14 May 1987) was a Taiwanese politician and businessman.
He was the second son of and a member of the Tsai family of Miaoli. The family was known outside of politics for its wealth. His brothers included ...
.
The family split Cathay Life Insurance in 1979. Tsai Wan-lin founded the Lin Yuan Group with his share. Over the next 10 years, the Lin Yuan Group expanded to become the largest Taiwanese conglomerate. Cathay Financial Holdings
Cathay United Bank () is one of the largest commercial banks in Taiwan, with a capital value of TW$67 billion (approximately US$2.23 billion) and more than 165 branches located throughout Taiwan. It is part of Cathay Financial Holdings.
History
...
, a division of the Lin Yuan Group, became Taiwan's largest financial holding company. Cathay Insurance was renamed Fubon Insurance in 1992.
Tsai was first listed by Forbes as a billionaire in 1987. He was appointed a senior adviser to the president of the Republic of China
The president of the Republic of China, now often referred to as the president of Taiwan, is the head of state of the Republic of China (ROC), as well as the commander-in-chief of the Republic of China Armed Forces. The position once had aut ...
in 2000.
He died of heart disease at the age of 81 in Taipei's Cathay General Hospital
Cathay (; ) is a historical name for China that was used in Europe. During the early modern period, the term ''Cathay'' initially evolved as a term referring to what is now Northern China, completely separate and distinct from China, which ...
, which he founded in 1977. He had been hospitalized for six years.
See also
* List of billionaires
References
External links
*
1924 births
2004 deaths
People from Miaoli County
Senior Advisors to President Chen Shui-bian
Taiwanese billionaires
20th-century Taiwanese businesspeople
Tsai family of Miaoli
{{Taiwan-business-bio-stub