Chinese boutique investment bank TH Capital has named Chen Zhiping as managing partner in charge of M&A and strategic transactions, while Hu Xiaoming, CEO of Chinese mobile payment behemoth Ant Financial, has resigned from the board of a wholly-owned affiliate of Chinese smartphone maker Meizu.
China’s TH Capital appoints Chen Zhiping as managing partner
TH Capital has appointed a new managing partner to lead its M&A and strategic transactions, as the Chinese boutique investment bank ropes in a partner from outside of the company for the first time.
Chen Zhiping, who co-founded Beijing-based investment firm RJ Capital, joined TH Capital to become its fifth managing partner, and the first partner roped in from a third-party company, TH Capital announced in a WeChat post on Wednesday (February 19).
TH Capital, which claims to have facilitated over 100 startups to raise more than $17 billion, was established in 2012 by three Chinese founding partners, Song Liangjing, Guo Ruyi, and Hu Wenqin. The company named the fourth partner Kenny Jiang Ke, less than four years after he joined the firm as an investment manager in April 2015.
Some of its clients include the Nasdaq-listed group-buying website Pinduoduo, Chinese fintech firm 51 Credit Card, second-hand vehicle trading platform Guazi.com, online education service Zuoyebang.com, intelligent logistics solutions provider Geek+, and Beijing-based short-term home rental platform Xiaozhu.com.
“The joining of Zhiping is of great importance to the company,” said Song Liangjing, founding partner and CEO of TH Capital, in the post. “His extensive experience in M&A deals in China and abroad will significantly enhance our capabilities in making in-depth and value-added deals.”
Before founding RJ Capital in May 2016, Chen worked in Blackstone’s Asia headquarters based in Hong Kong and Deutsche Bank’s Global Banking division, leading and participating in M&A and capital markets transactions in Asia. He also worked with Morgan Stanley Properties (China) and Citigroup/Salomon Smith Barney’s headquarters in New York.
Some of his previous clients include Malaysia’s sovereign wealth fund Khazanah Nasional Berhad, American private equity giant The Carlyle Group, Chinese home appliances provider Haier, and state-owned power firm China Three Gorges Corporation.
Ant Financial CEO leaves board of Chinese smartphone maker Meizu
Hu Xiaoming, CEO of Chinese mobile payment behemoth Ant Financial, has resigned from the board of a wholly-owned affiliate of Chinese smartphone maker Meizu, around one month after he left the board of the parent company.
Hu, who was named as the chief executive of Ant Financial in December 2019, gave up the board seat at Zhuhai Meizu Telecom Equipment, according to information updated on Chinese business data provider Tianyancha on Friday (February 21).
The affiliate operates Meizu Pay, a mobile payment service launched in June 2017 to enable users to pay for goods and transportation expenses through QR codes and near-field communication (NFC).
Ant Financial did not immediately respond to DealStreetAsia’s enquiry for comments.
Founded in 2003 by Jack Wong, Meizu started as a manufacturer of MP3 and MP4 players before the company shifted focus to smartphones in 2007. At the zenith of its development in 2015, the company raised $650 million in an investment led by Alibaba Group. Ant Financial is a fintech spin-off from Alibaba Group.
