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Rupert Murdoch’s ex-wife Wendi Deng to get Manhattan home, Forbidden City siheyuan in divorce settlement

Rupert Murdoch, billionaire media tycoon, has agreed to give former wife Wendi Deng a $16,669,600 luxury mansion located near the Forbidden City in Beijing as part of their divorce settlement, Want China Times reports.

Quoting sources, the website reports that, as per the stipulations in the divorce settlement, 45-year-old Deng will not be given a share in the 82-year-old media mogul's empire. In addition, the divorce will not have any effect on the Murdoch's family trust rules.

Grace and Chloe, two daughters of Murdoch and Deng, will retain "$8.73 million worth of Class A non-voting shares in Murdoch's companies," the site read.

Deng will also retain the former couple's three-story apartment on Fifth Avenue in Manhattan. Murdoch acquired the property for $44 million in 2005.

Murdoch purchased their Beijing "siheyuan," a traditional home with a courtyard, close to the imperial palace for roughly $16.5 million in 2004.

The 21,500-square-foot private property reportedly includes a billiards room, an underground swimming pool and a driving range. Prominent personalities, including former British Prime Minister Tony Blair, pop star Zhang Liangying and actress Fan Bingbing, have visited this luxury mansion.

Although popular around the 2008 Olympics, such properties are not easy to sell as the transaction must be made with one single cash payment.

There are an estimated 13 siheyuan properties across China, with owners including the late Hong Kong business magnate Henry Fok's grandson Kenneth Fok, and actress and singer Zhou Xunn, among others.

Murdoch and Deng ended their 14-year marriage Nov. 20, 2013.


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