The Legendary Life of Sir Yue-kong Pao: The First of the Seven Great Ship Kings in the World
Yue-kong Pao is the king of the ship and the richest man in Hong Kong. On November 10, 1918, Yue-kong Pao was born in a small merchant family in Ningbo, Zhejiang. At the age of 13, Yue-kong Pao was sent to Shanghai Maritime University by his father to study. However, it didn’t take long for the war to break out. After Pao thought about it, he gave up his education and went to a bank in Chongqing as an employee. In 1938, with years of industry experience, the 20-year-old Yue-kong Pao not only earned a reputation in the industry but also accumulated a lot of network resources. He was invited by Shanghai Central Trust to work in the insurance department. In seven years, he has been promoted all the way from an ordinary employee, once served as a branch manager, and finally sat in the position of assistant general manager of Shanghai Bank. However, just after his promotion, he resigned. During the Spring Festival of 1949, Pao and his family relocated to Hong Kong. His father has a starting capital of $100,000, and he has many years of experience in the financial and insurance industry. After searching for a number of projects, Pao decided to return to his old dream. He decided to do shipping business.
In order to make progress while maintaining stability, Yue-kong Pao spent 6 years planning for the preparatory work. He studied the relevant knowledge of shipping, and at the same time contacted friends in other cities, raised $700,000, and went to the UK to buy an old ship that has been running for 28 years. In 1955, Yue-kong Pao established a shipping company BW Group. Yue-kong Pao leased this old ship to others on a long-term lease of three years, five years, and ten years. In fact, Pao was 37 years old when he actually started the project. It didn’t take a long time for his approach to achieve great results. Most of the companies who signed lease contracts with him were in the shipping business of large companies. Pao has been playing steadily for many years and finally became the first of the seven major ship kings in the world. In 1981, Pao owned a total of 210 ships.
In 1978, Yue-kong Pao was homesick and met important leaders when he first returned to his hometown. When it came to the cooperative shipbuilding plan, many leaders expressed their strong support. His patriotism has gradually attracted the attention of those leaders. In 1981, Deng Xiaoping met with Pao and his father at the Great Hall of the People. In that year, Deng Xiaoping was 77 years old and Yue-kong Pao was 63 years old. After the meeting, the two sides exchanged their opinions and ideas on how to develop the shipbuilding industry. This meeting played a positive role in promoting the development of China’s shipbuilding industry.
After leaving his hometown for many years, Yue-kong Pao wanted to build a library at Shanghai Jiaotong University. Although as a businessman, he has been very successful. At the same time, he wants all the students in the world to enjoy the fun of reading books. He donated $10 million and was named after his father. On the day the library was completed, the wife of President Marcos of the Philippines also personally attended the ceremony to celebrate him. Later, with the support of Deng Xiaoping, Pao increased his confidence and expressed his willingness to donate another $10 million to build a restaurant named after his father in Beijing. In 1984, Yue-kong Pao donated ¥50 million to his hometown in Ningbo to build Ningbo University in order to give back to his hometown.
Yue-kong Pao has been in the business world for many years. On September 23, 1991, he divided his family property into four equal shares and distributed them to his four daughters, and entrusted his eldest son-in-law Helmut Sohmen to take over his business empire. After arranging these things, Pao closed his tired eyes and passed away in Hong Kong at the age of 73. Helmut Sohmen’s business investment vision was no less than that of his father-in-law. Under his control, the BW Group’s shipping business spread all over the world. Since he took over, BW Group shipping company is no longer limited to the world’s largest oil transportation, but also covers the transportation of natural gas, ore, liquefied gas, and other energy sources.
