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China's richest man is pouring 2.4 billion yuan in real money into Shanxi's richest woman.

The business partnership between Zhong Shanshan, founder of Nongfu Spring and China's richest man, and Yang Xia, founder of Jinbo Bio and Shanxi's richest woman, has seen some changes. On September 28, Jinbo Bio (832982.BJ), under Shanxi's richest woman, announced an adjustment to its private placement amount, reducing it from 2 billion yuan to 1 billion yuan. The reason for the adjustment was that the "Recombinant Humanized Collagen FAST Database and Product Development Platform Project" progressed rapidly, and the company had already invested its own funds in advance, so it reduced the fundraising for that portion. Meanwhile, because the company had ample working capital, it cancelled the original 850 million yuan arrangement intended to supplement working capital. The subscription target this time, Yangshengtang Co., Ltd., under China's richest man Zhong Shanshan, committed to accumulating an additional 1 billion yuan in company shares through the secondary market within 18 months, with cash donations if not completed. Both parties' statements carried a bold spirit of "not short of money," but as a result, their shareholding ratios began to shift in opposite directions.

The matter dates back to June 26, 2025, when a single announcement from Jinbo Bio (832982.BJ), the market value leader on the Beijing Stock Exchange, sent shockwaves through the capital markets. This newly emerged medical aesthetics star with a market value exceeding 40 billion yuan announced the introduction of strategic investor Yangshengtang, the parent company of Nongfu Spring. This capital operation consisted of two parts: Jinbo Bio raising 2 billion yuan through a private placement to Yangshengtang, while actual controller Yang Xia transferred 5% of her company shares to Hangzhou Jiushi at a price of approximately 1.403 billion yuan. The actual controllers of both Yangshengtang and Hangzhou Jiushi are Zhong Shanshan, founder of Nongfu Spring (9633.HK) and China's richest man for three consecutive years. If the transaction were completed, Zhong Shanshan would indirectly hold a combined 10.58% stake in Jinbo Bio, becoming the second-largest shareholder after Yang Xia, whose stake would fall to 50.73%. But now at the implementation stage, Yang Xia has received 1 billion yuan less from Zhong Shanshan, and the shareholding ratios have changed accordingly. After the adjustment, Yang Xia's side increased its stake to approximately 53.84%, while Zhong Shanshan's side holds approximately 7.47%, with the two still being the largest and second-largest shareholders.

At the time, this transaction set a historical record for the scale of cash private placements on the Beijing Stock Exchange. For Jinbo Bio, which had only 959 million yuan in cash on its books, this was undoubtedly a timely boost. The announcement of the marriage also coincided with a battle between two other heavyweight figures in China's medical aesthetics industry: Huaxi Biology under Shandong's richest woman Zhao Yan, and Giant Biogene under Shaanxi's richest woman Fan Daidi. The medical aesthetics industry is fiercely competitive, surrounded by giants, and filled with the smoke of battle. Although Jinbo Bio has developed rapidly, its smaller scale means relatively weaker financial strength. Jinbo Bio stated in its announcement that the company urgently needed to build a large-scale industrialized production system through strategic cooperation and establish a promotion, sales, and channel management system targeting a broader range of consumers. The most likely reason for reducing the private placement by 1 billion yuan is that Jinbo Bio is currently not short of money. The 2026 interim report showed that the company's cash balance was 1.145 billion yuan, an increase year-on-year. After the news was announced, Jinbo Bio closed at 128.66 yuan per share at midday, up 0.81%, with a market value of 14.8 billion yuan. Nongfu Spring closed at 39.52 Hong Kong dollars per share at midday, up 0.15%, with a market value of 444.5 billion Hong Kong dollars. Another listed company under Zhong Shanshan, Wantai Biological (603392.SH), closed at 26.48 yuan per share, down 0.79%, with a market value of 33.5 billion yuan.

Behind the marriage transaction between the two richest people are two entrepreneurs with completely different backgrounds. The 71-year-old Zhong Shanshan is a legendary figure in the business world. He started from nothing and founded the two major brands Nongfu Spring and Yangshengtang, turning a bottle of mineral water into a business empire with a market value exceeding 400 billion yuan. His business territory has long spanned multiple sectors including soft drinks, food, and biopharmaceuticals. In 2001, Zhong Shanshan acquired 95% of Wantai Biological through Yangshengtang for 17.1 million yuan. During that period, Wantai Biological developed a bivalent HPV vaccine against cervical cancer, which was warmly pursued by the capital markets.

The 51-year-old Yang Xia is an entrepreneur who transitioned from a research scholar. This native of Shanxi stayed on as a teacher at Shanxi Medical University after graduating in 1997, focusing on teaching and research in the field of liver transplant surgery. During her teaching and research, she discovered that the difficulty in organ preservation lay in the addition of collagen. At that time, collagen could only be extracted from placenta, which was expensive and limited in supply. During her liver transplant research, she conceived the idea of artificially synthesizing collagen and ultimately achieved valuable research results. In 2008, she resigned from her teaching position and founded Jinbo Bio, leading her team to attempt artificial collagen synthesis. "Today's development places more emphasis on scientific rigor. If we just imitate, it definitely won't work, or if we try to grab a piece of the cake in another track, that won't work either. So we created an entirely new track," Yang Xia once shared at a media event.

Why does a water seller have his eye on the medical aesthetics track? For Zhong Shanshan, who has navigated China's business world for decades, even in fields he has never entered, a quick look and a bit of homework is enough to make a fairly accurate judgment. So among the many investable targets, what makes Jinbo Bio attractive enough for Zhong Shanshan to bet 2.4 billion yuan on? As the "first stock" of recombinant collagen on the A-share market, Jinbo Bio has achieved consecutive breakthroughs in the field of biomaterials based on frontier technologies such as structural biology and rational protein design. In April 2025, the company's independently developed "Injectable Recombinant Type III Humanized Collagen Gel" was approved for market launch by the National Medical Products Administration. This was Jinbo Bio's third Class III implantable medical device for recombinant humanized collagen approved, following lyophilized fiber and collagen solution. With three Class III medical device registration certificates in hand, Jinbo Bio is currently the only company in this field that has achieved implant-grade Class III medical device technological breakthroughs and completed industrialization. Technological advantages directly translate into high performance growth: in 2024, the company's revenue was 1.443 billion yuan, up 84.92% year-on-year; net profit was 732 million yuan, up 144.27% year-on-year. Its gross margin was as high as 92.02%, with a net margin of 50.68%, and its profitability surpassed "stock king" Kweichow Moutai. Its products are hailed as "women's Moutai." The company's core product, the injectable recombinant Type III humanized collagen lyophilized fiber "Weiyimei® Jichun," has been applied more than 2 million times, covering approximately 4,000 end-user medical institutions. It contributed over 1 billion yuan in revenue to the company and is truly the main revenue driver. But Jinbo Bio also has shortcomings, namely that its channels are concentrated in medical aesthetics institutions, which is not conducive to the "consumerization of medical aesthetics products."

Nongfu Spring seeks a "second curve." Behind Zhong Shanshan's proactive move is an industry giant's vigilance in times of peace. Through controlling Nongfu Spring (drinking water), Wantai Biological (HPV vaccines), and Yangshengtang (cosmetics), his business territory has covered three major tracks: consumer goods, healthcare, and beauty. The layout in medical aesthetics had early signs. As early as 2017, Yangshengtang teamed up with Nongfu Spring to launch birch sap skincare products, selling out 160,000 boxes of masks in 1 minute. At that time, Zhong Shanshan declared that "the company's goal is to rank among the top five in cosmetics within 5 years." Although Nongfu Spring firmly holds the industry position of "water leader," competition from other brands such as Wahaha and C'estbon is also particularly fierce. In 2024, Nongfu Spring's packaged drinking water revenue dropped significantly by 21.3% to 15.952 billion yuan, selling 4.3 billion yuan less than in 2023. Inventory turnover days increased from 55 days in 2023 to 82.3 days. Although the tea beverage product Oriental Leaf became a new growth engine, with revenue reaching 16.745 billion yuan, up 32.3% year-on-year, the growth rate of the sugar-free tea beverage market has begun to slow.

Another listed company under Yangshengtang, "vaccine leader" Wantai Biological, also faces pressure. Although it received approval for China's first domestic nine-valent HPV vaccine in June this year, it had previously fallen into a price war over its bivalent vaccine, with net profit dropping to 106 million yuan in 2024. Moreover, Wantai's nine-valent vaccine faces追赶 from numerous competitors such as Shanghai Bovax and Walvax Biotechnology. Compared with this month's stock price high of 80 yuan per share, the current price of 61 yuan per share means market value has fallen by approximately 24 billion yuan. Zhong Shanshan urgently needs to find new growth curves for the company's development. Moreover, a realistic problem is that Yangshengtang's cosmetics line lacks high-end collagen raw materials. Recombinant collagen, due to its better biocompatibility compared to animal-derived extraction, is gradually becoming a new favorite in medical aesthetics. According to a mid-2024 forecast by Frost & Sullivan, a globally renowned strategic consulting firm, China's recombinant collagen product market is growing at a high compound annual growth rate of 44.93%. In 2022, China's recombinant collagen product market reached 19.24 billion yuan, and it is expected to reach 58.57 billion yuan by 2025 and exceed 219.38 billion yuan by 2030. The enormous market potential may be one of the main reasons for Zhong Shanshan's heavy bet.

A complementary transaction. This "marriage" currently appears capable of allowing both sides to complement each other's strengths. First, Yangshengtang's cosmetics line urgently needs high-end collagen raw materials. Shenwan Hongyuan's chief analyst for specialized and innovative enterprises, Liu Jing, and others commented that Jinbo cashing out to industrial capital rather than in the secondary market brought about a very good cooperation. Yangshengtang's cosmetics mainly focus on anti-aging, which fits well with Jinbo's products, and its channels are very strong, with 14,000 CS outlets (cosmetics stores) alone, which can greatly expand the company's cosmetics business. Jinbo Bio's R&D strength leads the industry, but technological leadership does not equal market leadership. Different application areas require different capabilities. For example, skincare products place more emphasis on product selection and marketing, while pharmaceuticals place more emphasis on efficacy and quality control. Rather than accumulating from 0 to 1, coordinating quality resources may be a more efficient way to expand the market. In terms of R&D integration, Wantai Biological's R&D system in vaccines and diagnostic reagents can promote the application of recombinant collagen in serious medical fields and can be integrated in areas such as drug carriers and oral repair, accelerating the application transformation of collagen biomaterials in skincare, food, pharmaceuticals, and other fields.

Yangshengtang has over 3 million retail terminals (supermarkets, pharmacies, online), which can introduce Jinbo's professional medical aesthetics products into mass consumer scenarios. Kaiyuan Securities' research report once pointed out that Jinbo Bio's "consumerization of medical products" strategy needs channel support. Yangshengtang's experience in intelligent production lines can help Jinbo Bio achieve large-scale production, and its accumulated retail channels will accelerate the penetration of new biomaterials into mass consumer scenarios. In addition, Wantai Biological's products are deployed in more than 100 countries and regions in Europe and Asia, and this channel will provide support for Jinbo Bio's internationalization. Soochow Securities' research report pointed out that Jinbo Bio's newly approved gel product is expected to launch in the third quarter, providing a new growth point. Combined with Yangshengtang's channel empowerment, the company is expected to upgrade from a "technology leader" to a "market leader." With the injection of 3.4 billion yuan in funds, the industrialization process of recombinant humanized collagen will undoubtedly be put on fast-forward.

Challenges remain: hidden concerns on the frontier. This high-stakes bet is not without risk. Competition in the medical aesthetics industry is becoming increasingly intense. In May last year, Huaxi Biology suddenly attacked ten brokerages for "the theory that collagen will replace hyaluronic acid" as endorsing Giant Biogene. Subsequently, the internet celebrity "Dr. Big Mouth," who has an equity relationship with Huaxi Biology, joined the fray and was ultimately temporarily banned from speaking. Zhao Yan and Fan Daidi, two female leaders in medical aesthetics, personally entered the battlefield, and ultimately Giant Biogene's 30 billion yuan market value evaporated into thin air, ending the dispute only after admitting defeat on its official account. This dispute also reflects the fierce competitive landscape of the industry. Although Jinbo Bio temporarily occupies the technological high ground, its dynamic price-earnings ratio of over 50 times requires sustained high growth to support it. It is worth noting that Jinbo Bio's revenue grew in 2023 and 2025, but the growth rate declined, and by the 2026 interim report, revenue even declined. At the same time, net profit appeared to decline, falling 11.69% year-on-year by the end of 2025, and by mid-2026, net profit slid to 280 million yuan, down 27.78% year-on-year. This is related to Huaxi Biology and Aimeike also laying out recombinant collagen, intensifying competition and directly impacting product prices. In 2024, the factory price of the company's blockbuster product "Weiyimei" fell 7.5% year-on-year to 908 yuan per unit.

In addition, in the secondary market, the number of institutional investors in Jinbo Bio has halved in recent years. At the end of 2024 there were 101, and by the first quarter of 2025 it had decreased to 51. In the first half of 2026, there were 46 institutional shareholders. Currently, one of Jinbo Bio's main advantages lies in holding three Class III medical device registration certificates. However, similar products from companies such as Giant Biogene and Chuangjian Medical have already entered the priority approval channel. For example, Giant Biogene's injectable recombinant collagen filler has entered priority review, and Chuangjian Medical's recombinant Type III collagen implant is also in the registration application stage. It is expected that 3 to 5 competing products will be approved this year. Regulatory risks should not be overlooked either. Relevant departments have imposed strict requirements on multiple aspects including the production, operation, and circulation of Class II and Class III medical devices, and stricter measures may be introduced in the future. On June 19 this year, the National Healthcare Security Administration issued the "Guidelines for Establishing Price Items for Medical Aesthetics and Plastic Surgery Services (Trial)," which unified commonly used medical aesthetics services nationwide into 101 specific items and standardized price items for commonly used medical aesthetics and plastic surgery services such as "filler injections." This also means that the era of "windfall profits" and wild growth in the medical aesthetics industry has ended, and it is entering a stage of standardized development.

Deng Yong, director of the Health Law Research and Innovation Transformation Center at Beijing University of Chinese Medicine, said in an interview with Beijing Business Daily that Zhong Shanshan's investment in Jinbo Bio is a capital operation of strategic significance and can be seen as a further layout in the big health field, aimed at seizing development opportunities in the recombinant collagen track and achieving industrial synergy and capital appreciation. Zhan Junhao, a well-known strategic positioning expert and founder of Fujian Huace Brand Positioning Consulting, emphasized that for Zhong Shanshan, this investment is an important step in laying out high-growth fields and broadening his business territory, and is expected to yield substantial returns. For Jinbo Bio, Zhong Shanshan's capital injection and resource倾斜 will provide strong support for its technological R&D and market expansion, further consolidating its market position. At the same time, Zhong Shanshan's brand influence will also bring positive brand linkage effects to Jinbo Bio, and this transaction is expected to achieve a win-win outcome.

Three-time "China's richest man" Zhong Shanshan's 2.4 billion yuan cross-border bet on "Shanxi's richest woman" Yang Xia reflects the breakout path of traditional consumer giants under growth anxiety. And Yang Xia's Jinbo Bio also hopes to ride the ship out to sea, leveraging Nongfu Spring's 3 million retail terminals across the country and Wantai Biological's layout in more than 100 countries and regions in Europe and Asia, to achieve an industrial leap from professional medical institutions to mass consumer scenarios, and from domestic to international. In any case, on the first anniversary of the confrontation between "Shandong's richest woman" Zhao Yan of Huaxi Biology and "Shaanxi's richest woman" Fan Daidi of Giant Biogene, this business transaction between the bottled water giant and medical aesthetics newcomer Jinbo Bio has also shrunk from 3.4 billion to 2.4 billion yuan, highlighting the subtle considerations of those involved and reflecting that the competitive landscape of China's medical aesthetics industry is quietly changing. What do you think about Jinbo Bio's Yang Xia taking 1 billion yuan less from "China's richest man" Zhong Shanshan? Have you used collagen? Feel free to discuss in the comments section!