ByteDance founder tops China's rich list for the first time, beating Tencent and Nongfu heads

ByteDance founder Zhang Yiming for the first time has emerged as China's richest person, according to a list compiled by Hurun Research Institute, leaving behind Nongfu Spring Chairperson Zhong Shanshan who has topped the rankings for three years.

Zhang, 44, with a personal wealth of $49.3 billion, beat 'bottled water king' Zhong, whose wealth dropped 24% to $47.9 billion after a public backlash against his company in February. Zhang was ranked fifth last year.

ByteDance is known for its popular app, TikTok, which has over a billion active monthly users globally. The company's profits surged around 30% last year, Hurun stated.

Pony Ma Huateng, CEO of Chinese internet giant Tencent, dropped one spot to third place, even as his wealth rose 13% to $44.4 billion amid a jump in Tencent's revenue and profit.

Colin Huang, founder of e-commerce platform Pinduoduo, was ranked fourth as his wealth declined by 9%. Midea founder He Xiangjian and CATL's CEO Zeng Yuqun took fifth and sixth places on the list. 

China has 1,094 individuals with wealth exceeding 5 billion yuan ($700 million), down by 12% or 147 individuals from the previous year, according to Hurun Research. The combined wealth of these entrepreneurs amounted to $3 trillion, 10% lower than last year.

The country's billionaire count dropped by 142 to 753 from a year earlier — falling more than 30% from the 2021 high of 1,185.

"The Hurun China Rich List has shrunk for an unprecedented third year running, as China's economy and stock markets had a difficult year," said Rupert Hoogewerf, Hurun report chairman and chief researcher.

The current rich list predominantly comprises entrepreneurs from the technology, consumer electronics and new energy space, from what used to be dominated by real estate developers, Hoogewerf noted.

"The stories of the individuals on the Hurun China Rich List tell the story of the Chinese economy," he said. 

The new generation of Chinese entrepreneurs are also more international than their predecessors, Hoogewerf observed, citing how ByteDance's Zhang went global with TikTok and Pinduoduo's Huang crafted Temu's ascent as a global e-commerce hub.