California surrogate shocked to discover she was paid $120,000 to carry baby of Chinese gaming billionaire
One woman decided to carry a child as a surrogate with a life-changing figure of $120,000 proving to be the primary motivating factor, but little did she know that the 'single father' she was giving birth for was in fact Xu Bo, a Chinese billionaire in charge of an incredibly successful gaming studio.
Surrogacy, while controversial in some circles, provides an option for children among those who either don't want to or cannot give birth themselves, and also often offer a significant amount of money to the woman embarking on the pregnancy.
Legal protections make it so that the entire surrogacy process can cost anywhere between $100,000 and $220,000, with the vast majority of that figure going towards compensation for the surrogate themselves.
As reported by CBS News, that's what attracted a California woman – referred to solely as Judy to protect her identity – to the prospect of surrogacy, but she was left stunned and confused when she found out who the father was following an investigation.
California woman paid $120,000 to be a surrogate
Judy spotted an advert for surrogacy on Instagram of all places, with the agency – Patriot Conceptions – offering an eye-watering figure of $120,000 for women willing to carry a child for another individual.
Advert
With a family of her own that included a seven-year-old child, Judy understandably took this potential avenue very seriously as that is a life-changing amount of money for most people in America.
Finding out who you're giving birth for is something that is somewhat of a gray area for most surrogates, however, as while some simply have no desire to know where the child they've given birth to ends up, others find it more difficult than expected to discover the specifics.
In Judy's case, Patriot Conceptions informed her that the father who will receive the child is single and looking to expand his family, with the understanding that he had also hired more than two dozen surrogates alongside herself.
How did Judy feel when she discovered who the father was?
While her attempts to find out more from Patriot Conceptions were shut down, an investigation conducted by CBS News revealed that this anonymous single father was Xu Bo, who some claim has fathered more than 300 children from surrogate programs.
According to Forbes, Xu has a net worth of around $1.1 billion from the success of his company, Guangzhou Duoyi Network, which one one of China's largest mobile gaming companies with games like Shenwu 2 and Dream World.
Xu himself has downplayed the claims surrounding the number of children he has fathered, but admits that's more than 100 in actuality. He has also revealed plans to have at least 20 children that have been born in the United States, with one of these expected to take over his company when he retires.
Addressing her feelings when the father of the child was unveiled, Judy argued that "the agency should've been very transparent from before getting matched [...] about who it is that you're having a baby for and what the family is."
She added that she's left wondering, "do I even have a right to know?," admitting that the 'motive' behind Xu's desire for a large number of children is unclear.
"It's going to be hard for the child," she noted, making reference to the lack of attention they might receive being one of potentially hundreds of children. "It's just a really crappy thing to be a part of."