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Family capital / Thailand

Thailand

Chearavanont family

Brothers Chia Ek Chor and Chia Siew Whooy emigrated from Chaoshan, China, to Bangkok around 1920 and opened a small seed shop in the city's Chinatown in 1921, importing vegetable seeds and agricultural supplies from China. The business, Charoen Pokphand, passed to the second generation — Dhanin Chearavanont and his brothers — who expanded it well beyond seed trading into animal feed, poultry, and broader agribusiness.

AgribusinessRetailFintech & financial-services stakes

How the fortune was built

Under Dhanin Chearavanont, CP became one of the first multinationals to invest in China's agribusiness sector from 1979, an early Thai investor in the Shenzhen special economic zone. CP diversified into retail through Thailand's 7-Eleven franchise and the Makro cash-and-carry chain, and in 2020 won a roughly $10 billion bid for Tesco's Thailand and Malaysia operations, rebranded Lotus's — one of the largest retail acquisitions in Southeast Asian history.

Where the family invests today

CP's most consequential financial holding is in Chinese insurer Ping An: a CP-linked entity acquired HSBC's 15.6% stake for about $9.4 billion in 2012–13, and by 2019 CP was Ping An's largest shareholder at roughly 23%, a position reported to have roughly tripled in value. In fintech, Ascend Money (parent of TrueMoney) raised $195 million led by MUFG in 2024, and a CP-led consortium won one of Thailand's first virtual banking licenses in 2025.

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Frequently asked questions

What is the history behind the Chearavanont family?
Brothers Chia Ek Chor and Chia Siew Whooy emigrated from Chaoshan, China, to Bangkok around 1920 and opened a small seed shop in the city's Chinatown in 1921, importing vegetable seeds and agricultural supplies from China. The business, Charoen Pokphand, passed to the second generation — Dhanin Chearavanont and his brothers — who expanded it well beyond seed trading into animal feed, poultry, and broader agribusiness.
How did the Chearavanont family build its fortune?
Under Dhanin Chearavanont, CP became one of the first multinationals to invest in China's agribusiness sector from 1979, an early Thai investor in the Shenzhen special economic zone. CP diversified into retail through Thailand's 7-Eleven franchise and the Makro cash-and-carry chain, and in 2020 won a roughly $10 billion bid for Tesco's Thailand and Malaysia operations, rebranded Lotus's — one of the largest retail acquisitions in Southeast Asian history.
Where does the Chearavanont family invest today?
CP's most consequential financial holding is in Chinese insurer Ping An: a CP-linked entity acquired HSBC's 15.6% stake for about $9.4 billion in 2012–13, and by 2019 CP was Ping An's largest shareholder at roughly 23%, a position reported to have roughly tripled in value. In fintech, Ascend Money (parent of TrueMoney) raised $195 million led by MUFG in 2024, and a CP-led consortium won one of Thailand's first virtual banking licenses in 2025.