According to reports from The Paper and Southern Metropolis Daily, Liu Qiangdong, founder of JD.com, revealed in an interview that he will invest 5 billion yuan in Guangdong Province to develop the yacht industry. This investment is a personal one, and he stated that he will not directly participate in operational management, as the brand has a CEO and a complete management team.

When asked why he entered the yacht industry, Liu mentioned his family's "boat people" heritage. "My family has been in the boat business for over a hundred years. I have a special feeling for boats. Even today, I sleep best on a boat. When I graduated from elementary school, my biggest dream was to become a village head. Later, in middle school, I hoped to become a captain—that was my childhood dream," he said.

The yacht brand, named Sea Expandary, signed strategic cooperation agreements with the governments of Guangzhou, Shenzhen, Zhuhai, and other cities on Tuesday (February 24, 2026).

According to data from China's Ministry of Transport, the number of yachts in China has grown significantly over the past three years, with newly registered yachts accounting for approximately 54.7% of the total. By the end of 2025, China had a total of 9,850 registered active yachts, and it is expected that this growth trend will continue over the next five years.