Chinese billionaires feel pinch in global downturn

China’s rich list has taken a heavy hit in the past year, with the number of billionaires plummeting by a fifth in the biggest drop in 24 years.

The number of Chinese billionaires shrank by a fifth this year, the largest fall in the 24 years since the Hurun Rich List was first compiled.

Figures for dollar billionaires dropped to 946, as their total wealth fell by 18 per cent. The decrease can be blamed largely on the global economic downturn and disruptions caused by Covid outbreaks but they hint at the impact of President Xi Jinping’s policies to more closely regulate the wealthy.

“The result? China’s stock market has fallen sharply,” said Rupert Hoogewerf, chairman and chief researcher of Hurun Report, the group that publishes the list. He stressed that China still has far more billionaires than five years ago.

The number of property developers on the list fell again, from 50 per cent 20 years ago to only 10 per cent this year, after Beijing tightened regulations. The crisis in China’s property sector has dealt a huge blow to developers.

The property developer Hui Ka Yan, once one of China’s richest people, has dropped out of the top 100. Picture: Paul Yeung/Bloomberg

Elizabeth Yang Huiyan, 41, majority shareholder of the Country Garden development company, lost $US15.7bn ($24.46bn), or 59 per cent, and slipped 36 places to 47th on the list. Hui Ka Yan, 64, once one of the country’s richest people, dropped out of the top 100, plunging 102 places to 172nd, as Evergrande, his property company, was burdened with more than $US300bn ($467.43bn) in liabilities after a highly leveraged expansion.

China’s technology tycoons also slipped in the rankings after the United States placed hefty restrictions on tech exports to China. Zhang Yiming, the 39-year-old founder of ByteDance, TikTok’s parent company, stayed in second place – but his net worth dwindled 28 per cent to $US35bn ($54.5bn).

Tech giant Tencent founder Ma Huateng lost almost a third of his wealth. Picture: AFP

Ma Huateng, also known as Pony Ma, 51, founder of the tech giant Tencent, fell to fifth place with a drop of $US14.6bn ($22.74bn) – almost a third of his wealth. Jack Ma, 58, founder of the Alibaba e-commerce company, slipped to ninth place from last year’s fifth spot after his net worth dropped 29 per cent.

There were, however, some winners. Pony Ma and Jack Ma were surpassed by Li Ka-shing, 94, a tycoon from Hong Kong, who is now fourth on the list, up from eighth place last year. His wealth rose 2 per cent to $US31.4bn ($48.9bn).

Ding Lei, also known as William Ding, the 51-year-old founder of Netease, an internet entertainment company, became the country’s sixth richest person. His net worth is $US27.9bn ($43.4bn) – up 14 per cent from last year.

The fortunes of the country’s richest man, Zhong Shanshan, 68, known as the “bottled water king” for his Nongfu Spring company, rose 17 per cent to $US65bn ($101.17bn). He claimed the top spot on the rich list for the second year.