The story
Tsinghua Holdings was formally formed in 2003 (though preliminarily tested in 2001) in response to the 2001 policy of separating universities and university-owned enterprises; all the shares of subsidiaries of Tsinghua University were transferred to Tsinghua Holdings. Announced by State Council of China in 2001, the plan aimed to separate ownership and management of holdings, bring on professional business managers, and separate assets of operating business and non-operating business. The university itself did not invest in other companies directly thereafter, but through the holding companies. The role of the university is to supervisor holding companies via nominating the board of directors with oversight for business plans, major investments, salary structure and other roles.
The predecessor of Tsinghua Holdings, Beijing Tsinghua University Enterprise Group (Chinese: 北京清华大学企业集团; pinyin: Běijng Qīnghuá Dàxué Qǐyè Jítuán), was incorporated on 26 August 1992. The university used an established company to become a new holding company in 2001 for its subsidiaries. According to 2010 Annual Report of Tsinghua Holdings, some assets unrelated to its business scope were transferred back to the university.
From Wikipedia’s article on Tsinghua Holdings, shared under CC BY-SA 4.0.4