Forbes has released its 2025 China Rich List. Benefiting from a rebound in the Chinese and Hong Kong stock markets, the combined wealth of the top 100 richest individuals jumped from last year’s $1.03 trillion (4.31 trillion MYR) to $1.35 trillion (5.65 trillion MYR), an increase of 31%. Nongfu Spring founder Zhong Shanshan once again tops the list for the fifth straight year.
The ranking for Forbes China’s top ten richest saw some minor changes, but Zhong Shanshan firmly holds the number one spot, with a fortune reaching $77.1 billion (322.5 billion MYR) this year—a dramatic 52% increase from last year.
This year, the second and third place have swapped: ByteDance’s Zhang Yiming recorded a net worth of $69.3 billion (289.9 billion MYR), up 52% year-over-year and climbing one place higher. Tencent’s founder Pony Ma Huateng is now in third with $62.8 billion (262.7 billion MYR), a 34% annual increase.
Wang Ning Ranked 13th on Rich List
The most striking wealth surge was for Pop Mart founder Wang Ning’s family, whose net worth soared from last year’s $5.5 billion (23 billion MYR) to $22.2 billion (92.9 billion MYR)—a threefold increase—and ranking leaped from 68th to 13th. In comparison, Cambricon founder Chen Tianshi also saw his net worth jump from $7.27 billion (30.4 billion MYR) to $21 billion (87.8 billion MYR), moving up from 46th to 15th place.
DeepSeek’s Liang Wenfeng is a New Entrant
This year’s China rich list features 8 new faces, including DeepSeek founder Liang Wenfeng, who ranked 34th with a net worth of $11.5 billion (48.1 billion MYR). Zhou Chaonan, founder of data center services provider Runze Technology, ranked 85th among the top 100 with $5.3 billion (22.2 billion MYR).
Meituan’s Wang Xing Suffers Most; Wealth Shrinks 40%
Some tycoons saw significant losses. Most notably, Meituan founder Wang Xing suffered the largest drop: his wealth shrank from $14.6 billion (61.1 billion MYR) to $8.4 billion (35.1 billion MYR)—a 42% evaporation—sending his ranking plummeting from 16th to 55th.
Wang Jianlin Drops Off the List After Being Former Number One
Wanda Group chairman Wang Jianlin, who was once China’s richest man, dropped out of the rankings this year, with a current net worth of only $4.2 billion (17.6 billion MYR). This year, the minimum threshold to enter the top 100 rich list rose from $3.9 billion (16.3 billion MYR) in assets to $4.6 billion (19.2 billion MYR).