The 41-year-old controls Country Garden Holdings, China's largest real estate developer by sales. Her stake was largely transferred from her father Yang Guoqiang, who founded the company in Foshan, Guangdong province, in 1992. Country Garden's stock has lost more than half its value this year, as the country's real estate sector has struggled with falling home prices, weakening buyer demand, and a debt default crisis that has engulfed some of its largest developers since last year.
In recent weeks, the real estate crisis has escalated, as thousands of disgruntled homebuyers who had made down payments for unfinished homes threatened to stop paying mortgages if construction is not completed in time. Country Garden is also facing growing liquidity stress. On Wednesday, the developer announced it would sell stocks at a nearly 13% discount to raise HK$2.83 billion , compared to its Tuesday's closing price.