Qu Benqiao

Qu Benqiao was a merchant and renowned financier of the Qu family active during the Ming and Qing dynasties. Known for intelligence, Qu Benqiao successfully passed the exams for the highest imperial civil service and began his career as state official. In 1903 he was appointed China’s chancellor in Yokohama in Japan and spent some time in Japan which was passing through rapid modernization. After returning to China Benqiao resigned from his post and concentrated on running his family’s banking business and started to invest in industry. In 1903 he purchased Taiyuan match factory, which was established in 1892, and operated poorly. Benqiao renamed the factory to the "Double Happiness" match company and through shrewd management succeeded to make a profit. By the early 1900s, the company's assets has reached 200,000 tales of silver.