In 2012, two executives at Alibaba pooled money to launch an app to help Chinese people hail taxis. The startup became Didi Chuxing, most recently valued at $28 billion. One of the co-founders, Cheng Wei, became CEO. The other, Wang Gang, has made so much money from Didi and an earlier stake in Alibaba that he is now one of China’s most active angel investors.
Mr. Wang put up $100,000 to start Didi, most of the seed money. In a rare and exclusive interview with The Information, Mr. Wang, 40, said his stake is worth $1 billion. In the past four years he has invested $20 million in over 70 companies in China and the U.S., following an investment philosophy he described in the interview.
