(Yicai Global) Nov. 3 – Xu Jiayin, the founder and chairman of China Evergrande, the country’s largest real estate developer, also became China’s most openhanded philanthropist for the first time by donating a total of CNY2.8 billion (USD419 million) within one year, according to the China Philanthropy List 2020 that Hurun Research Institute released today.

An aggregate CNY600 million of his donations went to the fight against the Covid-19 pandemic.

The CNY2.8 billion gifted comprises Xu’s personal gifts, with legally-mandated matching funds in his name from the company in an amount proportional to his 77 percent shareholding, per the press release Hurun Research Institute also issued. The donations also include about CNY1.75 billion given to southwestern Guizhou province and southern Guangdong province for poverty alleviation.

The statistics include cash donations, cash equivalents and legally-binding donative promises dated from April 1 last year to this year’s April 30. Hurun Report was established as a research unit in China in 1999 by British accountant Rupert Hoogewerf, whose Chinese name is Hurun.

The 55-year-old Chen Bang, founder and chairman of Aier Eye Hospital Group, secured the second ranking in such list with donations of CNY2.7 billion. He also endowed the public welfare foundation focusing on ophthalmology research and education. The 61-year-old Zhu Mengyi, the actual controller of Guangdong Pearl River Investment, and his family ranked third with CNY1.2 billion in charitable outlays, most of which went to benefit education.

The number of benefactors donating funds to the healthcare sector spiked this year due to the pandemic, Hoogewerf, chairman and chief researcher of the Hurun Report, noted in the press release, adding other companies also gave much to the war against Covid-19, but did not list.

Thus, Chinese property developer Vanke’s corporate securities center announced it was to donate more than CNY5 billion in shares to build the Vanke School of Public Health jointly with Beijing’s prestigious Tsinghua University. Wang Shi, Vanke’s founder and ex-chairman, was not personally inducted in the list because of his limited shareholding.

Editor: Ben Armour, Xiao Yi