SHANGHAI – Zhang Yiming, founder of ByteDance, the parent company of the popular app TikTok, has claimed the title of China’s wealthiest individual in 2024, with a net worth of $49.3 billion, according to the annual Hurun China Rich List, October 29.
At 41, Zhang ranks as the 18th richest individual in China in the 26-year history of Hurun’s ranking. Zhang, who stepped down as ByteDance CEO in 2021, overtook Zhong Shanshan, the founder of Nongfu Spring, whose wealth dropped by 24% to $47.9 billion, placing him in second.
Hurun noted that despite TikTok’s legal challenges in the U.S., ByteDance’s global revenue surged by 30% last year to $110 billion, boosting Zhang’s wealth significantly.
Tencent’s Pony Ma ranks third on the list, followed by Colin Huang, founder of e-commerce companies Pinduoduo (PDD) and Temu, who slipped from third place last year. The overall number of billionaires in China fell from 753 in 2021 to 142 this year, marking a significant drop. (TNA)
