Disruptors
Those who traverse cycles understand the weight of time.
Duan Yongping
“Do the right thing, not the right thing. Duty is the best strategy.”
Xiaobawang, BBK, OPPO, vivo, Pinduoduo, Jitu... Behind these national brands stands the same man. He reached the top twice and retired twice. According to public information such as Xueqiu, the annualized return on investment in 25 years was about 36%. Duan Yongping proved: The real strong man is not standing at the top, but being able to put down the top at any time. You may not know Duan Yongping. But your youth, life, and consumption cannot avoid him. Behind the Xiaobawang you have played, the BBK you have used, the OPPO and vivo in your hand, the Jitu Express you send and receive, and even Pinduoduo... there is the same man standing behind them all. He reached the summit twice and retreated twice. While others struggled to reach the top, he chose to go down. 1. Little Overlord: Counterattack from Near Death to One Billion In 1989, Duan Yongping took over the Rihua Electronics Factory, which was on the verge of bankruptcy. At that time, the company had 2 million yuan in debt and only 3,000 yuan in cash on its books, almost reaching a desperate situation. At that time, the domestic game console market was in chaos, with numerous brands and varying quality, and consumers lacked reliable choices. Duan Yongping entered the game to reshape the track order, created the brand "Little Overlord", and entered the market with quality and standardized play. In 1991, he decisively invested 400,000 yuan in a prime-time advertisement on CCTV. The slogan "Owning a Little Overlord can create a household worth 10,000 yuan" spread across the country and quickly opened up national awareness. With excellent products and precise marketing, in just five years, Xiaobawang's annual output value exceeded 1 billion yuan, occupying more than 80% of the domestic market share, and became a phenomenal national brand. Just doing it
Duan Yongping
Asia's "Cover Character"・Business Rebel
Total Issue 019 - ACF-NXZ-2026
Asia cover figure·Rebel in the business world｜Duan Yongping: Every time you climb to the top, choose to go down.
【Abstract】
Xiaobawang, BBK, OPPO, vivo, Pinduoduo, Jitu... Behind these national brands stands the same man. He reached the top twice and retired twice. According to public information such as Xueqiu, the annualized return on investment in 25 years was about 36%. Duan Yongping proved: The real strong man is not standing at the top, but being able to put down the top at any time.
You may not know Duan Yongping. But your youth, life, and consumption cannot avoid him.
Behind the Xiaobawang you have played, the BBK you have used, the OPPO and vivo in your hand, the Jitu Express you send and receive, and even Pinduoduo... there is the same man standing behind them all.
He reached the summit twice and retreated twice. While others struggled to reach the top, he chose to go down.
1. The Little Overlord: Counterattack from Near Death to One Billion
In 1989, Duan Yongping took over the Rihua Electronics Factory, which was on the verge of bankruptcy. At that time, the company had 2 million yuan in debt and only 3,000 yuan in cash on its books, almost reaching a desperate situation. At that time, the domestic game console market was in chaos, with numerous brands and varying quality, and consumers lacked reliable choices. Duan Yongping entered the game to reshape the track order, created the brand "Little Overlord", and entered the market with quality and standardized play.
In 1991, he decisively invested 400,000 yuan in a prime-time advertisement on CCTV. The slogan "Owning a Little Overlord can create a household worth 10,000 yuan" spread across the country and quickly opened up national awareness. With excellent products and precise marketing, in just five years, Xiaobawang's annual output value exceeded 1 billion yuan, occupying more than 80% of the domestic market share, and became a phenomenal national brand.
Just when his career reached the absolute peak of the industry, Duan Yongping chose to leave decisively and voluntarily gave up the business empire he had built because his demands for corporate shareholding reform failed to materialize.
Duan Yongping once said: "If I feel something is wrong, I will leave. No matter how big the price is, it is the minimum price."
It’s not about being forced out, it’s not about a conflict of interests. It is he who clearly understands that the solidified system cannot trap the further pattern.
While others struggled to reach the top, he took the initiative to go down.
2. Backgammon: The second peak work
In 1995, Duan Yongping, who left Xiaobawang, started his own business again and founded BBK, with a precise layout in the three major fields of educational electronics, communications, and audio-visual. He continues his business logic of pragmatism and deep cultivation, rejects short-term arbitrage, and focuses on polishing products and user experience.
In 1996, BBK won the CCTV bid at a high price of 81.23 million yuan, continuing to consolidate its brand influence. A variety of products such as repeaters, telephones, and DVD players continue to explode in popularity, and BBK has quickly become one of the national brands and has taken root in thousands of households.
After his career reached the top again, Duan Yongping once again made an adverse choice. In 1999, he took the initiative to split BBK into three independent companies, and handed over the mature business and team to core backbones such as Chen Mingyong and Shen Wei. Today's popular OPPO, vivo, and Xiaotiancai all originated from this split, and they have long occupied half of the domestic consumer electronics market.
Duan Yongping said: "I never want to be the first. When things are done well, being the first is natural."
What is most powerful about him is not that he is the first, but that he enables more people to be the first.
He chose to step back into the background and let young people stand in the spotlight.
3. Going down the mountain: At the age of 40, he chose to leave the poker table
In 2001, Duan Yongping, who was only 40 years old, chose to immigrate to the United States at the peak of his industrial career and completely retreated behind the scenes of business operations. He completed the second peak departure of his life and embarked on a path completely different from that of most entrepreneurs.
After bidding farewell to the industrial track, he devoted himself to the transformation of value investment, deeply cultivated Buffett's investment philosophy, adhered to the core logic of "buying stocks is buying companies", rejected speculation, and insisted on holding high-quality assets for the long term. From 2001 to 2002, he invested US$2 million in batches to purchase NetEase stocks, accurately grasping the industry cycle, and subsequent earnings increased by more than 100 times, becoming a classic case in the capital market.
In 2006, Duan Yongping bought Buffett's lunch for US$620,100, becoming the first Chinese investor to have lunch with Buffett. During the meeting, he had an in-depth exchange of value investments and business principles, and also popularized the concept of long-termism in the domestic capital market. At this dinner, he brought the still young Huang Zheng with him to lay the groundwork for the subsequent rise of new business forces.
Talking about life choices, Duan Yongping said: "I have no ambitions. I just want to live my own life and do something I like to do."
He always adheres to his true intention of investing: "Buying stocks means buying companies. If you understand, that is your good business."
While others worked hard to reach the top, he took the initiative to go down; while others pursued fame and fortune, he saw through the glitz.
His rebellion is against the greed of human nature and the impetuousness of the world.
4. Duty: The philosophy of penetrating cycles
Throughout Duan Yongping's business career, the word "duty" is the underlying logic that runs throughout. According to public information such as Xueqiu, his 25-year investment annualized return rate is about 36%, which has significantly outperformed the market in the long term, even surpassing Buffett's investment income in the same period. This is not due to speculation on the wind, but to extreme long-termism.
He has long been heavily invested in high-quality companies such as Apple and Moutai, adhering to the principle of long-term holding and passing through multiple industry bull and bear cycles. In addition to deep industrial development and investment layout, he continues to support the new generation of entrepreneurs. In 2020, he invested in Jitu Express to help Li Jie start his own business. Today, Jitu's market value has exceeded HK$100 billion; he continues to support Pinduoduo and accompanies Huang Zheng to create a new e-commerce landscape.
At the same time, Duan Yongping established a clear business “do not do list” to draw the bottom line for all cooperation and operations: no OEM work, no bargaining, no credit, no attacking opponents, do something, and do something not to do.
He broke down "duty" into three core connotations: doing the right thing with a normal heart, keeping your word and keeping your promise, and restraining selfish desires and not doing things you shouldn't do.
Duan Yongping’s definition: “Duty is to do the right thing and do things right.”
"A normal mind is the ability to eliminate all external interference and return to the origin of things at any time."
He understands business and human nature.
While others were chasing the wind, he sat down before the wind came.
The duty is simple, but never easy.
5. AB side of duty: achievement and tension
The philosophy of "duty" has established a stable foundation for the Duan Yongping family's business landscape, and has also allowed companies such as OPPO, vivo, Pinduoduo, and Jitu to always maintain a low-controversy, stable growth business situation, and maintain the original intention of long-term operation in an impetuous business environment. This is the A-side value of the "duty" concept.
However, with the iteration of the times, this mature underlying logic has also shown a new tension of the times. In May 2026, OPPO's vulgar Mother's Day marketing incident caused controversy across the Internet. The content was offensive to public perception and was criticized by the central media for being "vulgar" and "offensive to women." The brand immediately publicly apologized and admitted that it had a "serious lack of values."
After the incident, Duan Yongping made a rare public statement: "It's really inappropriate. If you're wrong, just correct it." He gently acknowledged the problem and accepted correction. This incident also triggered deep thinking in the industry: Will the extremely robust duty system breed innovation inertia and path dependence in disruptive technological changes such as AI and smart cars?
At the same time, Duan Yongping's "complete retirement" model for many years has also left behind deep-seated questions about institutional inheritance: Is he leaving a mature business system that can be replicated to future generations, or is he a spiritual "parent" vacancy that no one can replace? This is a growth proposition that all long-term and stable companies will eventually face.
Benfen established the Duan Yongping family, and Benfen is also facing the torture of the new era.
He used his duties to teach a group of leaders worth hundreds of billions, but when the rules are broken, who will hold the bottom line?
Someone asked Duan Yongping why he always chooses to go down the mountain at the peak moment?
He didn't talk about strategy or pattern.
"I just want to do what I love," he said.
From Xiaobawang to BBK, from industry to investment, from domestic to overseas. He climbed to the top twice and descended twice.
He spent his life proving that the real strong man is not about how glorious he is when he stands at the top, but about being able to let go of his aura at the top at any time.
He hid himself. But his apprentices are at the forefront of Chinese business.
The true rebel is not one who conquers the storm, but one who has come down the mountain before the storm comes.
【Data source】
Regarding the fact that Duan Yongping took over the Rihua Electronics Factory on the verge of bankruptcy in 1989, with debts of 2 million yuan and only 3,000 yuan in cash: TMTpost Media, 36 Krypton and other public reports.
Regarding Duan Yongping’s 400,000 yuan to place a Little Overlord advertisement on CCTV in 1991: TMTpost Media, 36 Krypton and other public reports.
Regarding the annual output value of Xiaobawang exceeding 1 billion yuan in 1995: 36 Krypton, China Economic Net and other public reports.
Regarding Duan Yongping’s departure from Xiaobawang in 1995 to found BBK and the equity incentive system: public information.
About BBK winning the CCTV bid in 1996 with 81.23 million yuan: 36 Krypton reports.
Public reports on the spin-off of BBK in 1999 and the incubation of OPPO, vivo, Little Genius: China Economic Network, 36 Krypton, etc.
Regarding Duan Yongping’s move to the United States in 2001 and his transition to investment: reported by China Economic Net.
Regarding Duan Yongping’s purchase of NetEase stocks in batches for US$2 million from 2001 to 2002, making a profit of more than 100 times: China Economic Net, Snowball and other public information.
Regarding Duan Yongping’s bid for Buffett’s lunch in 2006 for US$620,100: The Paper, eBay public records.
Regarding Duan Yongping’s 25-year investment annualized return rate of approximately 36%: Snowball’s public information.
Regarding the market value of Jitu Express exceeding 100 billion Hong Kong dollars: public reports such as Jiemian News.
Regarding OPPO’s Mother’s Day marketing controversy in May 2026, Duan Yongping responded: Yijian Finance, Futu Niu Niu and other reports.
| (Note: Part of the document may be generated by AI)
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