The recent drop in prices of various companies in China's stock market has booted off dozens of people from the country's billionaires list. Due to the significant loss in value of some Chinese people's portfolio, the country has reportedly lost 161 billionaires from its list. The list was updated by the wealth research firm Hurun Report, which includes the status of wealthy individuals in China. This includes people living in Hong Kong and Taiwan.
The report revealed that the heavy blow to the country's richest people came mostly from a 25 percent drop in China's stock markets and the recent decline of its currency last year. The slump was blamed on the country's slowing economic growth and the damage caused by its trade war with the United States. Despite the bleak outlook, economists believe that the slum should bottom out this year and possibly even recover slightly.
By the end of 2018, the number of billionaires in Greater China fell from 819 to 658. However, China still has the most number of billionaires when compared to other countries; including the United States. According to Hurun, the United States currently has 584 billionaires, which had increased by 13 people in the past year.
Aside from revealing the people that were taken off the list, the report also showed who had lost the most money due to the slump. The billionaire who lost the most net worth is Chinese billionaire and the former richest man in China, Wang Jianlin. The business magnate and founder of the Dalian Wanda Group lost 37 percent of his net worth, which now stands at around US$17 billion.
Another billionaire who suffered significant losses is Ma Huateng, the CEO of the internet and gaming firm Tencent. Ma reportedly lost over 19 percent of his net worth, which now stands at around US$38 billion. Shares in the company's stocks plummeted amidst the country's freeze in approving its various software and games.
While it might have been a bad year for some of China's richest individuals, some billionaires actually made more money amidst the turmoil. Jack Ma, the founder of the Chinese e-commerce giant Alibaba, saw his net worth rise to more than 20 percent. Ma is now estimated to be worth more than US$39 billion, which officially makes him the country's richest man this year. The bulk of Ma's wealth increase apparently came from the success of his company's payments affiliate, Ant Financial. Some new names had also emerged on the list this year, which includes new internet startup founders like Zhang Yiming. Zhang is the founder of ByteDance, which created the popular social media app, TikTok.
