The Full List of Chinese Billionaires In 2023 - Who Are The Richest People In China?
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| Who Are The Richest People In China - Photo KnowInsiders |
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How many billionaires in China? How much do they own?
China’s wealthy have taken a huge hit with the number of Chinese billionaires plummeting by a fifth in 2022, the largest fall in the 24 years since the rich list began.
The Hurun Rich List revealed that the number of Chinese billionaires dropped about 20 per cent from 1185 to 946, while their total wealth also fell by 18 per cent.
| What is the reason behind the drop? Mainland China’s economic, political and pandemic woes have contributed to the biggest drop in the fortunes there since Forbes began tracking the country’s wealthiest more than two decades ago. |
Hurun Report chairman and chief researcher Rupert Hoogewerf said China’s billionaires had been hit hard in the past year, with nine of the top 10 biggest wealth shrinkages across the world, as well as the largest fall in number of billionaires.
“E-commerce platforms, real estate, education, generic drugs and vaping were the hardest hit,” Mr Hoogewerf said. “The recent Covid outbreak across the country and increased tension with the US combined … to see the steepest drop in value since the 2008 financial crisis, with many of China’s biggest companies shedding up to half their value,” he said.
“Other factors in play include continued anti-monopoly regulations, pressure on real estate borrowings, efforts to stem the falling birthrate, carbon emission targets and the recently introduced common prosperity theme.”
READ MORE: Top 20 Richest Countries In the World 2023 - By GNI Per Capita
| An annual ranking of Chinese billionaires lost nearly 300 members this year, as Tencent’s Pony Ma, ByteDance’s Zhang Yiming and Alibaba’s Jack Ma saw their fortunes plunge by as much as 32 per cent amid the country’s economic slowdown. The latest Hurun China Rich List, which ranks the wealthiest people in China with a minimum net worth of 5 billion yuan (US$691 million), saw 293 billionaires drop off the list compared with last year, while 133 newcomers joined. The net loss of 160 billionaires is an 11 per cent drop and the largest decline in 24 years. The minimum threshold was 2 billion yuan prior to this year. |
| The total wealth of the 1,305 people who made 2022 list slumped by 18 per cent to US$3.5 trillion compared with last year. The combined wealth of China’s 100 richest plunged 39% to $907.1 billion from $1.48 trillion in last year’s list. |
| The billionaires list changes a great deal from year in China , which shows the volatility, dangers and fleetingness of being rich in China. For a while the list was dominated by dot.com magnates, then real estate tycoons and retailers, now paper and solar cells are making their mark. Many who are at the top one year are bankrupt the next. |
Who Lost the Most?
The fortunes of China's wealthiest have plunged by the most in over two decades as a property market crisis and Beijing's strict COVID curbs hammer growth.
Leading the drop was businesswoman Yang Huiyan of developer Country Garden Holdings, who lost $15.7 billion from her net worth this year, while technology group Tencent's Pony Ma saw his personal fortune cut by $14.6 billion.
Forrest Li, chairman of Singapore-based e-commerce group Sea, posted the third-biggest loss with a drop of $13.7 billion, the Hurun China Rich List 2022 says.
The total wealth of 1,305 people with a minimum net worth of 5 billion yuan ($710 million) declined 18% from a year ago to $3.5 trillion, according to the report.
And the number of superrich with $10 billion tumbled by 29, to 56 individuals, while the number of dollar billionaires fell by 239, to 946, the report says.
Those who struck it rich in real estate accounted for 10% of the wealthiest, down from 20% a decade ago, underscoring a severe downturn in the key property market, marked by a liquidity crisis among developers swamped with debt and evaporating demand.
Chinese billionaires compared to US billionairesChina has more total billionaires: 946 to the U.S.' 716. And its billionaire population is growing about three times faster than America's, according to Hurun. The three cities with the biggest billionaire populations are now all in China: Shenzhen just overtook New York City for third place. But America's billionaires are still wealthier than China's. They control about 32% of the combined wealth of all the "known billionaires" in the world, while China's billionaires account for about 27% of that wealth. |
Top 10 Richest People in China in 2023
1. Zhong Shanshan
NET WORTH: $65.7 BILLION
SOURCE OF WEALTH: BEVERAGES, PHARMACEUTICALS
RESIDENCE: HANGZHOU
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| Photo SCM |
Zhong chairs bottled water and tea drink producer Nongfu Spring. He holds on to the No. 1 richest in China spot he grabbed last year after the company’s September 2020 IPO in Hong Kong. Zhong also chairs Beijing Wantai Biological Pharmacy, a maker of Covid-19 tests.
2. Zhang Yiming
NET WORTH: $50 BILLION
SOURCE OF WEALTH: INTERNET MEDIA
RESIDENCE: BEIJING
Zhang is the main founder of ByteDance, which operates the wildly popular short video social media app TikTok and ranks as one of the world’s most valuable unicorns. Zhang stepped down as chairman of ByteDance in November 2021 after resigning as CEO in May.
READ MORE: Top 7 Richest Kids in the World in 2023
3. Ma Huateng
NET WORTH: $37.2 BILLION
SOURCE OF WEALTH: INTERNET MEDIA
RESIDENCE: SHENZHEN
Ma is CEO of web-media giant Tencent. The company’s Hong Kong-traded shares fell by nearly half in the past year amid slower growth and a shift in Communist Party rules toward Internet businesses. In March, Ma said China’s internet industry was “restructuring” and “shifting to a healthy mode.”
4. He Xiangjian
NET WORTH: $28.3 BILLION
SOURCE OF WEALTH: HOME APPLIANCES
RESIDENCE: FOSHAN
Home appliance billionaire He Xiangjian is a cofounder of Shenzhen-listed Midea Group; he stepped down as chairman in 2012. His family also controls Midea Real Estate, whose business has been hurt by oversupply in the mainland property market. His fortune contracted by about 25% in the past year.
5. William Lei Ding
NET WORTH: $25.2 BILLION
SOURCE OF WEALTH: ONLINE GAMES
RESIDENCE: HANGZHOU
Ding is CEO of Nasdaq-listed NetEase, one of China’s largest online gaming businesses. The company raised $422 million in a Hong Kong IPO of its music app, Cloud Village, last December. His fortune fell from $33 billion on the 2021 list.
6. Wang Wei
NET WORTH: $24.3 BILLION
SOURCE OF WEALTH: PACKAGE DELIVERY
RESIDENCE: SHENZHEN
Wang founded and chairs package delivery firm S.F. Holdings, known as the Fedex of China. His fortune declined 37% in the past year as lower profit and tough competition hurt its Shenzhen Stock Exchange-listed shares.
7. Qin Yinglin
NET WORTH: $24.1 BILLION
SOURCE OF WEALTH: PIG BREEDING
RESIDENCE: NANYANG
Qin chairs Muyuan Food, one of China’s largest pig breeders. He started the business with his wife, fellow billionaire Qian Ying, with 22 pigs in 1992.
8. Li Shufu
NET WORTH: $23.7 BILLION
SOURCE OF WEALTH: AUTOMOBILES
RESIDENCE: HANGZHOU
Li Shufu (also known as Eric Li), China’s richest entrepreneur in the auto industry, chairs Zhejiang Geely Holding, which holds direct and indirect stakes in automakers that include Volvo and electric vehicle maker Polestar.
9. Jack Ma
NET WORTH: $22.8 BILLION
SOURCE OF WEALTH: E-COMMERCE
RESIDENCE: HANGZHOU
Once China’s richest person, the formerly outspoken Alibaba cofounder has gone quiet amid shifting government policies toward internet companies, overseas listings and wealth accumulation, as well as a 60% plunge in Alibaba’s share price during the past year.
10. Huang Shilin
NET WORTH: $20.3 BILLION
SOURCE OF WEALTH: BATTERIES
RESIDENCE: NINGDE
Huang is one of two vice chairmen at Contemporary Amperex Technology, one of the world’s largest suppliers of batteries to electric vehicle assemblers.
Who is the Youngest Billionaire in China?
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| Photo iNews |
25-year-old Wang Zelong is the youngest billionaire in China and Asia as well. This year, he is listed as the fourth-youngest billionaire in the world.
His fortunes are from stakes in Chinese chemical companies CNNC Hua Yuan Titanium Dioxide and Lomon Billions group. His net worth, estimated to be US$1.5 billion, remains the same as last year.
Wang’s profile on Forbes mentions that he hails from the city of Jiaozuo in the province of Henan, China. For comparison, the Chinese capital of Beijing is 16 times larger than Jiaozuo, while Shanghai’s population is more than 20 times greater than theirs.
Even though he is one of the richest millennials in Asia, Wang has kept a very private life, much like some fellow billionaires. There is very little information known about him. He keeps a very minimal digital footprint, not even having an official social media account nor an online profile for his professional endeavours.
Chinese Billionaires in the 2010s and 2000s
According to Forbes China list released in October 2010 the number of billionaires soared to 128 from 79 in 2010. There were 42 Chinese billionaires on the 2009 Forbes list. According to Forbes the combined wealth of the 40 richest people in China was $38 billion in 2006 — up 46 percent from 2005. Consumer goods, Internet and property tycoons dominated the Hurun Rich List in 2011. Of the 50 richest Chinese on the Forbes list in 2005 half relied on real estate for a substantial amount of their wealth. Of the 100 richest Chinese on the 2001 Forbes list, 73 had their education interrupted by the Cultural revolution and 16 were rabbits on the Chinese zodiac. Only four were signs of the monkey.
The entire Hurun Rich List in 2010 named 1,363 people with wealth of at least 1 billion yuan (about $150 million). According to Hoogewerf’s calculations the average age of China’s billionaires in 39. He told the Washington Post. “They are still in wealth-creation mode, focused more on expanding their own company, especially because the economy is growing so fast.” Many of them want to keep a low profile so as not to draw too much scrutiny to their wealth or company dealings. Credit Suisse has estimated that China’s wealthy have up to $1.4 trillion of corruption-tainted cash socked away.
According to Hurun Report, the number of billionaires in China exceeded 100 in 2007 (Forbes counted 66) with 35 of them real estate tycoons. There were only 15 in 2006. China is now No. 2 in the world on the billionaire’s list. The United States has the most. The high number of billionaires is both a source of pride and cause for alarm in China.
99 Richest People in China 2022/2023 - Hurun Report
| Rank | Name | Wealth | Key Business | Industry | Residence |
| 1 | Zhong Shanshan | $65 billion | Nongfu Spring, YST | Bottled Water, Health Food | Zhejiang |
| 2 | Zhang Yiming | $35 billion | ByteDance | Social Media | Beijing |
| 3 | Zeng Yuqun | $32.9 billion | CATL | Lithium Battery | Fujiang |
| 4 | Li Ka-shing | $31.4 billion | Cheung Kong | Diversified | Hong Kong |
| 5 | Pony Ma Huateng | $30.7 billion | Tencent | Internet, Technology | Guangdong |
| 6 | Ding Lei | $27.9 billion | Netease | Internet, Gaming | Zhejiang |
| 7 | He Xiangjian | $27.1 billion | Midea | Appliance Maker | Guangdong |
| 8 | Qin Yinglin & Qian Ying | $26.4 billion | Muyuan | Pigs | Henan |
| 9 | Jack Ma Yun | $25.7 billion | Alibaba, Ant Group | E-Commerce, Fintech | Zhejiang |
| 10 | Huang Zheng | $24.3 billion | Pinduoduo | E-Commerce | Shanghai |
| 11 | Chen Jianhua & Fan Hongwei | $21.4 billion | Hengli | Petrochemicals, Textiles | Jiangsu |
| 11 | Liu Yongxing & Liu Xiangyu | $21.4 billion | East Hope | Chemicals, Animal Feeds | Shanghai |
| 11 | Lu Xiangyang & Zhang Chanhong | $21.4 billion | Youngy, BYD | Investment, Electric Car | Guangdong |
| 14 | Lee Shau Kee | $20.7 billion | Henderson Land | Property | Hong Kong |
| 14 | Wang Chuanfu | $20.7 billion | BYD | Electric Car | Guangdong |
| 14 | Wang Wei | $20.7 billion | SF Express | Delivery Services | Hong Kong |
| 14 | Yan Hao | $20.7 billion | China Pacific Construction | Construction | Jiangsu |
| 18 | Henry Cheng Kar-shun | $20 billion | Chow Tai Fook | Jewelry, Property | Hong Kong |
| 19 | Lee Choi Mei Ling | $19.3 billion | Lee Kun Kee | Asian sauces | Hong Kong |
| 20 | Li Shufu | $19.3 billion | Geely | Car Maker | Zhejiang |
| 21 | Pang Kang | $18.6 billion | Haitian | Soy Sauce, Food Processing | Guangdong |
| 21 | Wei Jianjun & Han Xuejuan | $18.6 billion | Great Wall Motor | Car Maker | Heibei |
| 23 | Liu Hanyuan & Guan Yamei | $17.9 billion | Tongwei | Solar, Agriculture | Sichuan |
| 24 | Peter Woo Kwong-ching | $17.1 billion | Wheelock | Property | Hong Kong |
| 25 | Wang Xing | $16.4 billion | Meituan | E-Commerce | Beijing |
| 26 | Huang Shilin | $15.7 billion | CATL | Lithium Battery | Fujian |
| 26 | Li Xiting | $15.7 billion | Mindray | Medical | Singapore |
| 26 | Wang Wenyin | $15.7 billion | Amer | Industrial | Guangdong |
| 26 | Xu Hang | $15.7 billion | Mindray, Parkland | Medical, Property | Guangdong |
| 30 | Richard Liu Qiangdong | $15 billion | JD | Internet, E-Commerce | Beijing |
| 30 | Yan Bin | $15 billion | Reignwood | Beverages | Beijing |
| 32 | Lui Che Woo | $14.3 billion | Galaxy Entertainment | Casino, Entertainment | Hong Kong |
| 32 | Wang Jianlin | $14.3 billion | Dalian Wanda | Diversified | Beijing |
| 32 | Zong Qinghou | $14.3 billion | Wahaha | Beverages | Zhejiang |
| 35 | Luo Liguo | $14 billion | Hoshine | Silicon | Zhejiang |
| 36 | Chen Bang | $13.6 billion | Aier Ophthalmology | Hospital | Hunan |
| 36 | Liu Yonghao | $13.6 billion | New Hope | Agribusiness | Sichuan |
| 36 | Zhang Family | $13.6 billion | Xinfa Group | Aluminum | Shandong |
| 36 | Zhang Zhidong | $13.6 billion | Tencent | Internet, Technology | Guangdong |
| 40 | Joseph Lau Luen Hung | $13 billion | Chinese Estates | Property | Hong Kong |
| 41 | Lin Li | $12.6 billion | Liye | Investments | Guangdong |
| 42 | Chen Dongsheng | $11.8 billion | Taikang | Insurance | Beijing |
| 43 | Jiang Rensheng | $11.7 billion | Zhifei | Vaccines | Chongqing |
| 43 | Zheng Shuliang | $11.7 billion | Weiqiao Pioneering | Textiles, Aluminum | Shandong |
| 45 | Zhao Changpeng | $11.4 billion | Binance | Blockchain, Crypto | Dubai |
| 46 | Li Yanhong & Ma Dongmin | $10.8 billion | Baidu | Internet | Beijing |
| 47 | Du Shuanghua | $10.7 billion | Rizhao Iron and Steel | Steel | Shandong |
| 47 | Lei Jun | $10.7 billion | Xiaomi | Mobile | Beijing |
| 47 | Yang Huiyan | $10.7 billion | Country Garden | Property | Guangdong |
| 50 | Wang Yusuo & Zhao Baoju | $10.5 billion | ENN | Energy & Gas, Clean Energy | Heibei |
| 50 | Wu Yajun | $10.5 billion | Longfor | Property | Beijing |
| 52 | Dang Yanbao | $10.4 billion | Baofeng Energy | Energy, Hydrogen | Ningxia |
| 53 | Li Zhengguo & Li Xiyan | $10.4 billion | Longi | Silicon | Shanxi |
| 54 | Jin Baofang | $10.1 billion | JA Solar | Solar Energy | Heibei |
| 54 | Li Shuirong | $10.1 billion | RongSheng | Petrochemicals | Zhejiang |
| 56 | Liang Wengen | $10 billion | Sany | Machinery | Hunan |
| 57 | Kwong Siu Hing | $9.9 billion | Sun Hung Kai | Property | Hong Kong |
| 57 | Xu Haoyu | $9.9 billion | Yangtze River Pharmacy | Pharmaceutical | Jiangsu |
| 59 | Qi Shi | $9.9 billion | Eastmoney | Information | Shanghai |
| 60 | Pei Zhenhua & Rong Jianfen | $9.8 billion | Canmax | Eletronics, Machinery | Jiangsu |
| 61 | Huang Chulong | $9.3 billion | Galaxy Group | Property | Guangdong |
| 61 | Li Hua | $9.3 billion | Excellence | Property | Guangdong |
| 63 | Zhu Baoguo | $9.1 billion | Joint Care | Pharmaceutical | Guangdong |
| 64 | Gong Hongjia & Chen Chunmei | $8.8 billion | Hikvision | Internet, Video Surveillance | Hong Kong |
| 64 | Richard Li Tzar Kai | $8.8 billion | PCCW | Telecommunications | Hong Kong |
| 64 | Wang Junlin | $8.8 billion | Langjiu | Liquor | Sichuan |
| 67 | Zhang Yong & Shu Ping | $8.7 billion | Haidilao | Hotpot Restaurant | Singapore |
| 68 | Liu Jincheng & Luo Jinhong | $8.6 billion | EVE Energy | Battery | Guangdong |
| 69 | Miao Hangen & Zhu Hongmei | $8.5 billion | Shenghong Printing & Dyeing | Printing, Dyeing | Jiangsu |
| 70 | Yu Yong | $8.4 billion | Cathay Fortune, Hongshang | Investment, Mining | Shanghai |
| 71 | Yao Liangsong | $8.4 billion | Oppein | Furniture | Guangdong |
| 71 | Zhang Congyuan | $8.4 billion | Huali Industrial | Manufacturer, Sports Shoes | Guangdong |
| 73 | Chen Lihua | $8.3 billion | Fu Wah | Property | Beijing |
| 73 | Jiang Weiping | $8.3 billion | Tianqi | Mining | Sichuan |
| 75 | Terry Guo Tai-Ming | $8.1 billion | Hon Hai (Foxconn) | Eletronics | Taiwan |
| 76 | Shen Guojun | $8.1 billion | Yintai | Diversified | Beijing |
| 76 | Wang Laisheng & Wang Yayuan | $8.1 billion | Luxshare Precision | Consumer Electronics | Guangdong |
| 76 | Wu Jianshu | $8.1 billion | Tuopu | Automobile Parts | Zhejiang |
| 79 | Wang Laichun | $8.1 billion | Luxshare Precision | Consumer Electronics | Guangdong |
| 79 | Zhang Hejun | $8 billion | Deye Technology | Technology | Zhejiang |
| 81 | Gao Jifan | $7.5 billion | Trinasolar | Solar Energy | Jiangsu |
| 82 | Sun Piaoyang | $7.4 billion | Hengrui | Pharmaceutical | Jiangsu |
| 83 | Cao Renxian | $7.3 billion | Sungrow Power Supply | Electric, Machinery | Anhui |
| 83 | Li Ping | $7.3 billion | CATL | Lithium Battery | Fujian |
| 83 | Lin Jianhua & Zhang Hong | $7.3 billion | First Applied Material | Solar Films | Zhejiang |
| 83 | Zhong Huijuan | $7.3 billion | Hansoh | Pharmaceutical | Jiangsu |
| 87 | Chen Tianqiao & Luo Qianqian | $7.15 billion | Shanda | Investment, Gaming | California, US |
| 87 | Lai Haimin | $7.15 billion | Horoy | Property | Guangdong |
| 87 | Wang Liping | $7.15 billion | Hengli Hydraulic | Hydraulic | Jiangsu |
| 87 | Frank Wang Tao | $7.15 billion | DJI | Commerical Drones | Guangdong |
| 87 | Xu Yangtian | $7.15 billion | Shein | E-Commerce | Guangdong |
| 87 | Zhu Mengyi | $7.15 billion | Hopson | Property | Guangdong |
| 93 | Zhao Yan | $7.1 billion | Bloomage | Biotechnology | Beijing |
| 94 | Joseph Tsai Chung-Hsin | $7 billion | Alibaba, Ant Group | E-Commerce, Fintech | Hong Kong |
| 94 | John Tu | $7 billion | Kingston Technology | Semiconductor | Los Angeles, US |
| 94 | David Sun | $7 billion | Kingston Technology | Semiconductor | Los Angeles, US |
| 94 | Yan Xin | $7 billion | Sunsun Construction | Construction | Jiangsu |
| 98 | Sun Shoukuan | $6.9 billion | Jiacheng | Steel, Resources | Liaoning |
| 99 | Fang Wei | $6.6 billion | Fangda | Materials | Beijing |
| 99 | Jian Jun | $6.6 billion | Imeik | Biotechnology | Beijing |
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