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Chinese 'Princess' turned entrepreneur Wendy Yu invests in fashion and tech ventures

Wendy Yu
Wendy Yu

Tycoon’s daughter has made impressive investment deals and is determined to raise the profile of her brand even further

Wendy Yu might have been born with a silver spoon in her mouth, but she’s not a typical rich kid. Daughter of a mainland Chinese tycoon, Yu believes her professional achievements will in due course come to speak louder than her wealth.

“It’s important for me to have my own vision,” Yu says. “My work will eventually speak for [itself].”

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Born in Zhejiang in eastern China, London-based Yu started her own investment firm, Yu Capital, last year, focusing on fashion and technology companies.

One particularly shrewd investment she made in recent times is in ride-sharing company Didi Chuxing, which made the headlines in May after securing US$1 billion in funding from Apple. Yu, who invested in Didi Chuxing in earlier funding rounds, expects a great return from the deal.

Good timing and risk management are crucial to investors, Yu believes. “Especially in the technology sector [where] the growth is exponential,” she adds.

“It’s very important that you invest with the right timing. But the earlier the stage, the riskier it is to invest. For me, I [consider] myself a value investor. I would only invest in a business when I think it’s at the right value, and at the right time.”

Yu’s investment style has been influenced by her father, who started his own business from scratch.

“Before I went to study in England, my father and I had a chat and he said he only wanted [to see] three qualities in me – to be a loving and caring person, to always fight for a better self, and not to be afraid of hardships,” Yu recalls. “Growing up, I always knew how hard my dad had fought for his business.”