China invests in Hollywood

CHINA’S richest man Wang Jianlin has signed an agreement to invest in Sony Pictures through his business Wanda – in yet another signal of the nation’s voracious appetite to invest overseas.

Wanda, which owns a chain of cinemas in China, hopes to ‘highlight the China element’ in the films in which it invests. The company also wants to boost its influence in the global film industry.

For Sony Pictures, the deal will give it a greater platform to promote its productions through Wanda’s cinema infrastructure.

It is not real estate developer Jianlin’s first foray into Hollywood. The 61-year-old, who is worth about £23bn, financed the Oscar-winning movie Spotlight and, in January, Wanda bought a controlling stake in film studio Legendary Entertainment for £2.7bn.

In a second Asian deal this week, United Photovoltaics Group, a Chinese solar-farm operator, is to buy six solar plants in the UK for up to £30m.

The listed firm will buy them from Luxembourg’s Notus Investments. The Chinese government is a major shareholder in United PV.