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Zhong Shanshan, the founding father of the favored Chinese bottled water model Nongfu Spring, has overtaken
Alibaba (BABA) founder Jack Ma to change into the nation’s wealthiest individual, in keeping with the
Bloomberg Billionaires index.
Zhong
was already China’s third richest individual after his firm went public earlier this month with a blockbuster itemizing in Hong Kong. As of Wednesday, his estimated internet price had reached $58.7 billion, surpassing Ma’s $56.7 billion, in keeping with Bloomberg calculations.
Zhong’s new standing additionally places him forward of
Pony Ma, who based
Tencent (TCEHY). Unlike Jack Ma and Pony Ma, Zhong will not be a tech entrepreneur. Outside of his stake in Nongfu Spring, he’s the top of a vaccine maker, Beijing Wantai Biological Pharmacy. That firm went public in Shanghai this 12 months, which additionally helped enhance Zhong’s wealth.
“You would have typically expected the number one in China to come from [technology],” stated Rupert Hoogewerf, chairman of wealth analysis agency Hurun Report.
Zhong can be identified for being extra low-profile and reclusive in comparison with different prime enterprise leaders, which has earned him the nickname “lone wolf.”
“He’s not known to have many entrepreneur friends,” stated Hoogewerf, a longtime China watcher who relies in Shanghai. “He just kind of gets on with his own business.”
But even previous to his newest success, Zhong’s observe report was spectacular.
“Zhong Shanshan is one of the few people in China to not just build one $10 billion business, but two $10 billion businesses,” stated Hoogewerf. “It’s pretty remarkable.”
New breed of billionaires
Zhong’s ascent underscores the speedy tempo of wealth creation in China.
Earlier this 12 months, China was already residence to many of the world’s billionaires, with greater than the United States and India mixed, in keeping with a world wealthy checklist compiled by the
Hurun Report.
According to
Bloomberg calculations, Zhong’s estimated internet price was $20 billion final month — suggesting he has tripled his fortune in simply a matter of weeks.
The increase is anticipated to proceed.
In current months, a
parade of preliminary public choices has unfolded world wide, particularly in China.
Hong Kong is the world’s second hottest venue for inventory market listings to date this 12 months, behind solely the tech-heavy Nasdaq in New York, in keeping with knowledge supplier Refinitiv.
Shanghai’s
Star Market, a Nasdaq-style tech board launched final 12 months, has additionally seen a large swell in exercise recently. IPOs and secondary listings have raised a mixed $21.6 billion to date this 12 months, in keeping with Refinitiv.
And that is even earlier than the extensively anticipated mega-IPO of Ant Group, Alibaba’s monetary companies arm, which is anticipated to be
one of many largest listings in historical past. Ant is getting ready to hit the markets in each Shanghai and Hong Kong this 12 months, which may increase
as a lot as $30 billion.
The occasion may simply let Jack Ma reclaim his title because the nation’s richest man.
A report launched by Deloitte on Wednesday stated that “several other developments are set to sustain the prevailing trend of listings in the Chinese Mainland and Hong Kong over the rest of this year,” together with the approval of cross-listing guidelines and a
new tech index in Hong Kong.
That will possible spawn much more billionaires in China, Hoogewerf predicts.
He estimates that about 100 new billionaires can be created in China this 12 months due to the IPO increase. That’s “one every four days. Two a week,” he stated.
— Laura He contributed to this report.
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