Why China’s richest man is joining the communists

Chinese businessman Liang Wengen, CEO of Sany Group, is tapped to become a member of China's Communitst Party's Central Committee.

JOHN MACDOUGALL/AFP/GETTY IMAGES

China’s richest person is tapped to become the first private entrepreneur to join the top ranks of China’s Communist Party, according to state media reports.

Wengen Liang, chairman of machinery-maker Sany Heavy Industry, could be elected as a member of the party’s powerful Central Committee at a meeting of its National Congress next fall, 2012. The congress meets once every five years, and speculation around possible party members is ramping up as it approaches.

Nearly 400 of China’s most senior party members make up the committee.

The 54-year-old tycoon, whose net worth is estimated at $9.3 billion (U.S.), topped Forbes magazine’s annual list of China’s wealthiest people.

If chosen, Liang’s membership into China’s ruling elite would be a sign that the party is embracing private enterprise, experts say.

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