Wolves owner Fosun's profits rise to £1.2 billion

The figure is 26 per cent up on 2020.

Revenue for the Chinese group also rose by 18 per cent to £19.2bn.

The revenue from more than 30 overseas countries and regions where Fosun operates accounted for 42 per cent of the total revenue for the year.

Guo Guangchang, the 53-year-old founder and chairman of Fosun International, said: "This year, Fosun enters into the 30 years of establishment. After nearly 30 years of development, Fosun has grown into one of the few domestic enterprises that is equipped with global operations, investment capabilities, and accumulated profound technology and innovation capabilities."

Fosun, which was founded in 1992, bought Wolves in 2016 for £30 million.

The club forms part of the Happiness segment of the group, which also includes Thomas Cook and Club Med.

The Premier League club sits in the Fosun Sports group committed to the operation and development of sports-related industries. It also takes in lifestule clothing brand WWFC and Wolves ESports and is the licensing partner for the China Football Association.

Happiness achieved revenue of £7.9bn during the year – an increase of 19.4 per cent. Fosun Tourism contributed £1.1bn with a year-on-year increase of 31.2 per cent.

Fosun's annual investment in scientific and technological innovation reached £1.06bn for the year. It has more than 1,500 authorised invention patents and more than 500 new products under development.

The group's Health segment, including healthcare group Fosun Pharma, achieved revenue of £5.2bn, an annual increase of 27.1 per cent. Businesses such as pharmaceutical products and health services have moved forward steadily.

The total number of registered users of Fosun Health reached 13.34 million in the year.

Fosun Pharma has established a global research and development centre and strengthened its global clinical and drug registration capabilities.

Its Wealth segment had revenue of £5.2bn – up 2.8 per cent – and the Intelligent Manufacturing segment was up 56.3 per cent at £920 million.

Fosun, which now has more than 16,000 overseas employees, had total assets valued at £95.87bn at the end of 2021.

The group has been listed on the main board of the Hong Kong Stock Exchange since 2007.