by Shannon Thaler at New York Post
A Chinese billionaire credited with pioneering the online video gaming industry has become the second-biggest foreign owner of US land thanks to his nearly 200,000 acres of Oregon timberlands.
Chen Tianqiao, 50, acquired the huge tracts in Oregon from Fidelity National Financial Ventures for $85 million, or about $430 per acre, in 2015, according to the Land Report, which lists the Chinese-born, California-based businessman as the 82nd-largest property owner in America.
Despite the nearly decade-old purchase, the publication only added Chen to its Top 100 Landowners list this week.
Chen’s trails only Canada’s Irving family in foreign ownership on the list.
The Irvings own 1.2 million acres of Maine timberland, putting them No. 6 on Land Report’s ranking.
Chen made his fortune by founding online gaming company Shanda Interactive in 1999.
Within five years,…
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