Billionaire denies allegations made in Caixin report
Controversial philanthropist Chen Guangbiao denied on Friday allegations questioning of his charitable giving and that he had undergone a gastrectomy to trim down to promote his weight-loss products.
The 48-year-old billionaire claimed he had made donations of more than 2 billion yuan ($300 million) and helped more than 700,000 poor families by 2012.
A Caixin magazine report earlier this week said that Chen has given away 20 to 30 million yuan of his own money at most.
At a news briefing, Chen showed of his donation receipts and documents, though reporters were not allowed to examine them.
“Ninety-nine percent of my donations have been fulfilled, and the remaining 1 percent will be paid in installments,” Chen said.
He also showed a medical examination report to prove he had not had a gastrectomy. Chen lost 26 kilograms in three months, after his company invested in a diet food product.
“I lost weight through professional guidance, dieting, exercise and specially designed food. Any malicious media reports against me and my company will bear huge liability for compensation.”
Chen sued Caixin Media Co on Wednesday, which alleged that he lied in many of his public statements regarding what he has done for the underprivileged. A court in Nanjing, Jiangsu province, has accepted the case.
Chen reiterated on Friday that the Caixin’s report was “hearsay, malicious, calling black white” and that it had “extremely negative consequences” for him and his company.
At the 40-minute news briefing, Chen refused to answer questions, insisting that it was a “news-releasing”, not a “question-answering” event.
After the briefing, accusations emerged that people who claimed to be Chen’s distributors had pushed journalists into an elevator and tried to beat them.
Chen, president of Jiangsu Huangpu Recycling Resources Co, is well known in China for his high-profile public life.
In 2013, he said he tried to buy The New York Times together with a billionaire in Hong Kong.