Chinese billionaire's company responds to media reports

Chinese billionaire’s company responds to media reports

Chen Tianqiao is 82nd on list of the biggest individual landowners in US
His company bought 198,000 acres of Oregon timberland in 2015
Spox: Company asked Committee of Foreign Investment to review purchase

Updated: Jan 16, 2024 / 03:04 PM CST

CHINA – FEBRUARY 21: Shanda Interactive Entertainment Ltd Founder, Chairman, and Chief Executive Officer Chen Tianqiao poses in his company’s headquarters in Shanghai, China, on February 20, 2006. (Photo by Qilai Shen/Bloomberg via Getty Images)

(NewsNation) — A spokesperson for Chinese billionaire Chen Tianqiao’s company has responded to media reports about him being one of the United States’ top landowners.

Chen, according to The Land Report, is ranked as 82nd in a list of the biggest individual landowners in America, making him the second-largest foreign investor in U.S. farmland.

In 2015, the co-founder of Shanda Interactive Entertainment bought nearly 200,000 acres of timberlands in Oregon costing a total of $85 million.

Chen’s name, The Daily Mail reports, does not appear in government records of agricultural land ownership by foreign investors, despite the fact that United States Department of Agriculture is supposed to track these kinds of purchases.

This drew controversy from lawmakers, including Congressman Jon Tester of Montana, who wrote a letter to the Department of Agriculture and Treasury asking for answers.

Rep. Elise Stefanik, R-N.Y., said in a statement that the USDA dropped the ball.

“Food security is national security,” she said. “We cannot protect our agricultural land from foreign adversaries if we do not know they are purchasing it.”

Jason Reindorp, global head of communications and external relations for Shanda Interactive Entertainment, said in a statement to NewsNation the company proactively requested that the Committee of Foreign Investment in the United States review the potential acquisition, even before the process started.

In their response, Reindorp said, “The Committee stated that there were no concerns and approved the acquisition.”

Shanda, Reindorp said, is an “active participant” in the Deschutes Collaborative Forest Project and works with the Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife to provide exclusive hunting opportunities for disabled veterans and young people. In addition, Shanda recently donated 10 acres to a local fire department for a community center and headquarters.

Reindorp also said in the statement that contrary to media outlets reporting that Chen joined the Chinese Communist Party at 18, he is not a member of it.

Chen had been a member of the Chinese People’s Political Consultative Conference, or CPPCC, from 2018 until his resignation in 2018. The CPPCC, Reindorp said, is an advisory body with no real political power.

“The Chens left China in 2010 and lived in Singapore for about 6-7 years before moving to the Bay Area where they have resided since,” Reindorp said.