WANG JIANLIN OF WANDA HOLDS OFF JACK MA TO RECLAIM TOP SPOT WITH US$32.1BN
594 DOLLAR BILLIONAIRES IN CHINA, PULLING AWAY FROM USA
‘HOSTILE TAKEOVER KING’ YAO ZHENHUA, 46, BREAKS INTO TOP 5 WITH US$17.2BN
2056 CHINESE WITH US$300M, UP 179 YOY DESPITE SLOWDOWN
HURUN REPORT - LEADING AUTHORITY ON CHINA’S WEALTHY - RELEASES CHINA RICH LIST 2016 IN ASSOCIATION WITH Forest City
Hurun Rich List slows. Rupert Hoogewerf, Hurun Report Chairman and Chief Researcher, said, “Despite a 20% drop in the domestic stock markets and a slowdown in the economy, theForest City Hurun Rich List swelled by 179 to 2056 individuals, double that of three years ago and up ten-fold from ten years ago.”
Wang Jianlin, 62, of Wanda, retains his crown, down 2% to US$32.1bn, holding off a 41% surge in wealth from Jack Ma, 52. Pony Ma, 45, of Tencent rises one place to third on a 38% surge in wealth, despite giving away US$2.1 billion in the last year.
Wealth creation pulling away from US. “There are now 754 Chinese billionaires in the world, way more than in the US,” says Rupert Hoogewerf. “Mainland China has 594, down 2 from last year; HK, Taiwan and Macao have 94; and there are 66 others in the world, mainly in SE Asia. This compares with 535 billionaires in the US, according to the Hurun Global Rich List 2016 released in February.”
‘HostileTakeover King’ Yao Zhenhua, 46, of Baoneng is the biggest riser this year, shooting up 200 places to 4th on the back of a nine-fold increase in his wealth to US$17.2bn. Low-profile Yao made the headlines this year for his hostile takeover of leading real estate developer Vanke. Rupert Hoogewerf said, “Yao’s financial investment model represents the new wave of wealth creation in China. The first money made in China twenty years ago came from trading, followed by manufacturing, real estate, IT and today it is about using the capital markets for financial investments.”
3 other new faces in Top 10: ‘Online Games Tycoon’ Ding Lei, 45, of Netease,‘Real Estate King’Xu Jiayin, 58, of Evergrande and ‘Home Appliances King’ He Xiangjian, 78 of Midea. Mobile phone maker Lei Jun of Xiaomi dropped out of Top 10 to 14th place.
It has been a good year for financial investments and IT. Despite a surge in real estate prices in China’s first-tier cities of Shenzhen, Beijing, Shanghai and Guangzhou, it has been a bad year for real estate, manufacturing and textiles. Rupert Hoogewerf said, “If you look at absolute wealth on the Hurun Rich List, it has come from three main sources: real estate, driven by China urbanization program, IT, driven by the digitalization of the country, and manufacturing, based on China’s early export model. Total wealth from the Hurun Rich List rose 7%, in line with China’s GDP growth.”
Two new entrants to the Top 100. Online games magnet Chi Yufeng, 45, of Perfect World, and ‘Shaver and Hairdryer King’ Li Gaiteng, 44, of Flyco.
Beijing is the preferred city of residence for 322 individuals, up 43 from last year, followed by Shenzhen and Shanghai. HK rose one place to seventh.
Wealth creation slowing. 1007 saw their wealth decline or remain static; 703 saw their wealth increase, of which only 45 doubled; 346 new faces and 167 drop-offs.
Millennials. 181 individuals are under forty, of which 64 are self-made, led by Jack Wang Qicheng, 36, of Hakim with US$3.7bn and Drone King Frank Wang Tao of DJI with US$3.6bn. Three born in the nineties, inherited their wealth.
24% are women, up 3% from last year. ‘Beijing Real Estate Queen’ Chen Lihua, 73, of Fuwah is the most successful businesswoman in China and – by default – the world.
Political appointments down. 176 of the Forest City Hurun Rich List, down 17 from last year, are delegates to the 12th National People’s Congress (99 individuals) or the CPPCC (77 individuals). 8 NPC delegates from Liaoning province were expelled for election fraud.
In trouble with the law. Only 12 of last year’s list in varying degrees of trouble with the authorities, down four from last year. In a disappearance that captured world business media attention, Guo Guangchang went missing for three days before being released. Mou Qizhong, 75, a former Top 15 on the first Hurun Rich List in 1999, was released after completing a 16-year sentence.
95% are self-made, with only 5% inheriting their wealth.
Chinese star signs. It has been a good year for sheep, rats and pigs, and a bad year for horses and ox. Rabbits lead the way for the umpteenth year.
The 18th edition of the Hurun Rich List is published in association with Forest City, a large-scale property development by Country Garden Pacificview in Iskandar Malaysia, next to Singapore.
(13 October 2016, Forest City, Malaysia) The Hurun Research Institute today released the Hurun Rich List 2016 in association with Forest City. This is the 18th annual ranking of the richest individuals in China. Wealth calculations are a snapshot of 15 August, the same date as previous years.
Rupert Hoogewerf said, “Over the past 18 years, the Hurun Rich List has grown to become a yardstick by which to measure the evolution of China’s private sector. I am delighted to be putting out the list this year in association with Forest City, areal estate project in Malaysia, just beside Singapore, developed by HK-listed Chinese real estate brand Country Garden. This shows the appetite for Chinese to buy property abroad.”
This is an executive summary of the Chinese press release. For the full press release, please refer to the Chinese language version.
The Top 10
There are 4 new entries to the Top 10: Yao Zhenhua of Baoneng, Ding Lei of Netease, Xu Jiayin of Evergrande and He Xiangjian & son He Jianfeng of Midea. Six made their money from real estate, up 1 from last year. 4 are IT tycoons, same as than last year. The cut-off to make the Top 10 increased 20%, to US$11.6bn. Average age is 54, one more than last year. All would now make the Top 100 of the Hurun Global Rich List. Lei Jun of Xiaomi and Lu Guanqiu of Wanxiang dropped out of the Top 10.
Name / Wealth US$bn / Change / Age / Company / Main Business1 = / Wang Jianlin & family / 32.1 / -2% / 62 / Wanda / Real estate, entertainment
2 = / Jack Ma & family / 30.6 / 41% / 52 / Alibaba, Ant Financial / E-commerce, financial services
3 ↑ / Pony Ma / 24.6 / 38% / 45 / Tencent / Communications, online games
4 * / Yao Zhenhua / 17.2 / 820% / 46 / Baoneng / Investments, real estate
5 ↓ / Zong Qinghou & family / 16.7 / -17% / 71 / Wahaha / Drinks
6 = / Yan Hao & family / 14.9 / 10% / 30 / China Pacific Construction / Roads
6 * / William Ding Lei / 14.9 / 96% / 45 / Netease / Online games
8 ↑ / Robin Li & Melissa Ma / 14.7 / 15% / 48, 46 / Baidu / Search engine
9 ↑ / Lu Zhiqiang & family / 12.7 / 2% / 64 / Ocean Wide / Real-estate, investments
10↑ / Xu Jiayin / 11.6 / 30% / 58 / China Evergrande / Real estate, investments
10↑ / He Xiangjian & He Jianfeng / 11.6 / 30% / 74, 49 / Midea / Home appliances
10= / Yan Bin / 11.6 / 20% / 62 / Reignwood / Red Bull, real estate
10↓ / Zhang Jindong / 11.6 / -4% / 53 / Suning / Retail, real estate
Source: Forest City Hurun Rich List 2016
↑Rank increase yoy ↓Rank decrease yoy –No rank change yoy *New to top 10
Wang Jianlin, 62, of Wanda managed to hold onto his top spot, despite a 41% surge in Jack Ma’s wealth. Wang made headlines in August for recommending to wannabe entrepreneurs that they should first set themselves a 'small target of 100 million CNY’. In September, Wang delisted his property arm from the HK stock exchange with a view to relisting on the mainland with a higher valuation. Rupert Hoogewerf, Hurun Report Chairman and Chief Researcher said, “Should Wang manage to get his property arm listed on the domestic stock exchange, this could well propel him to a US$50bn fortune, making the world’s Top 10 for the first time.” Wang completed the US$3.5bn acquisition of Hollywood studio Legendary Entertainment, cementing his reputation as a global media player and one of the Hurun Rich List’s most active on the global stage. High-profile son Wang Sicong, 28, has seen his own fortune rise by a third to US$900m.
Jack Ma Yun, 52, & family saw his wealth rise 41% to US$30.6bn, on the back of a surge in the value of Alibaba, and a B-round investment valuing Ant Financial, mothership of Alipay, at US$60bn.Alibaba, at US$26.7bn, is the most valuable company on the list. Rupert Hoogewerf said, “Jack Ma has become all pervasive. It is now hard to open a newspaper without finding mention of him or one of his companies.”
Pony Ma Huateng, 45, climbs back to third with a net worth of US$24.6bn, up 38% year on year, despite donating US$2.1bn in the last year. Ma has cashed out big time in the past year, taking out US$1.9bn from the sale of his Tencent stock, and has also become the most generous Chinese this year, according to the Hurun Philanthropy List 2016. Four other Tencent co-founders, led by Chen Yidan, 45, and angel investor Wang Gang made the list this year.
‘Hostile Takeover King’ Yao Zhenhua, 46, of Baoneng is the biggest riser this year, shooting up 200 places to fourth on the back of a nine-fold increase in his wealth to US$17.2bn. Low-profile Yao made the headlines this year for his aggressive acquisition of the shares of leading real estate developer Vanke. Rupert Hoogewerf said, “Yao represents the new wave of wealth creation by financial investments in China. It started with trading twenty years ago, followed by manufacturing, real estate development, IT and today financial investments.”
Zong Qinghou, 71, dropped out of the Top 3 for the first time in recent memory, after a 17% decrease in his wealth to US$16.7bn on the back of a slowdown in his Wahaha business. Daughter Kelly Zong is playing a more active role in the business.
William Ding Lei, 45, shot up 10 places to sixth place, with a fortune doubling to US$14.9bn on the back of a surge in the online gaming division of Netease. Rupert Hoogewerf said, “Ding Lei has to be a candidate for Number One, which he last held in 2003, since he is growing so fast and has such a high percentage of Netease stock, over 40%.”
‘Road King’ Yan Hao, 30, & family held on to sixth with US$14.9bn, up 10%. Yan Jiehe officially handed over the reins and shares of the business to son Yan Hao. China Pacific Construction was the highest-ranked private Chinese company on the Fortune Global 500, with sales of US$72bn, ranking it at 99th in the world.
Robin Li Yanhong & Melissa Ma Dongmin saw their 21% share of Baidu rise 15% to US$14.7bn, despite another high-profile scandal, this time involving the death of a cancer patient, highlighting Baidu’s reliance on healthcare keyword advertising income.
Lu Zhiqiang, 64, of Oceanwide rose one place to ninth with a US$12.7bn fortune. This past year, Lu has invested into Wang Jianlin’s cinema business and US$1bn into Minsheng Bank. Lu donated US$110m to Fudan University, where he studied for a masters.
‘Home Appliance King’ He Xiangjian, 74, & son He Jianfeng, 49, returned back to the Top 10 for the first time in five years on the back of a 30% spike in their wealth. In August, Midea took over one of the Big Four of global robot manufacturer, acquiring the majority of German robotics maker Kuka for US$5bn.
Xu Jiayin, 58, of Evergrande returned back to the Top 10, on the back of a 30% increase in his wealth. Xu made the headlines big time during the Olympics, when legendary volleyball coach Lang Ping, whom he had enticed back to China, led China’s women’s volleyball team to gold. Xu’s Evergrande made the Fortune Global 500 for the first time this year and in October this year overtook Vanke to be the largest developer by sales.
Zhang Jindong, 53, made the news in the last year mainly in soccer, first buying his local Jiangsu soccer team and then taking control of Inter Milan in Italy for US$310m.
‘Red Bull King’ Yan Bin, 62, held on to his Top 10 spot. Yan’s main business interests are real estate in Beijing and London, and drinks, led by his distribution of Red Bull in China, and including a 50% acquisition of high-end water brand Voss in the past year.
Out of Top 10
Lei Jun, 46, of Xiaomi and Lu Guanqiu, 63, of Wanxiang dropped out of the Top 10 to 14th and 18th. Lei’s wealth shrunk by a third on the back of intensifying competition for the smartphone sector. Lu is one of the most well-established Chinese entrepreneurs in the US.
Cross-border M&A. Guo Guangchang of Fosun, Wang Jianlin of Wanda, Jack Ma of Alibaba and Ant Financial, and Pony Ma of Tencent are leading the globalization of the Forest City Hurun Rich List for the second year running. Rupert Hoogewerf said, “Fears of a further depreciation of the Chinese yuan and a continued slowing of the Chinese economy have propelled entrepreneurs to look beyond their shores in numbers previously unheard of.”
Deals made in the past year include:
Finland: Pony Ma of Tencent led a US$8.6billionacquisition of Supercell,themakerofthe ‘ClashofClans’mobilegame, in the largest acquisition by a Hurun rich lister in the past year.
US: Wang Jianlin of Wanda bought Legendary Entertainment in probably the highest-profile takeover this past year, paying US$3.5bn; Liu Zhongtian of aluminummakerZhongwangacquired itsUS counterpartAleris in a US$2.3billion deal; Guo Guangchang of Fosun bought US provider of specialty property and casualty insurance Ironshore for US$2bn; Jack Ma’s Alibaba Pictures invested in Steven Spielberg’s Amblin Partners; Jack Ma’s Alipay has invested into the China business of Pizza Hut and KFC; Cheng Wei of Didi took in a US$1bn investment from Apple; Zhao Weiguo of chip maker Tsinghua Unigroup, bought a US$2bn controlling stake in Hewlett-Packard's China data-networking operations, and has also invested US$42m into US-chip maker Lattice. Zhao had to pull out in February of a US$3.8bn deal to invest in disk-drive makerWestern Digital, rejected on national security grounds; Wang Jianfeng of Ningbo Joyson bought a US air-bag maker for US$920m.
Israel: In June, Shi Yuzhu and Jack Ma led a US$4.4bn acquisition of Israel-based online games company Playtika, best-known for Bingo Blitz and Slotomania.
Germany: He Xiangjian of Midea bought leading robot business in a multi-billion dollar acquisition, the biggest European acquisition from someone on the Hurun Rich List this year; Deng Xinhua of Tianbao bought a German water cleansing business; Guo Guangchang of Fosun completed the purchase of German private bank H&A for US$230m; Lin Xiucheng of Sanan is currently in talks to purchase German lighting manufacturer Osram in a multi-billion dollar deal.
India: Guo Guangchang of Fosun paid US$1.2bn for India pharmaceutical business Gland Pharm; Zhang Zhiyong of Miteno paid US$900m for advertising technology company Media.net; Huawei, LeEco, Mi, Oppo, Vivo are actively promoting their smartphones in India.
UK: Chen Dongsheng of Taikang became the biggest shareholder of Sotheby’s, buying 13.5% for US$230m; Wang Chunming of Guodong announced a US$2.6bn regeneration project in Sheffield; Tony Xia Jiantong of Recon bought UK soccer club Aston Villa for US$109m;Guo Guangchang of Fosun paid US$60m for UK soccer club WolverhamptonWanderers.
France: Wang Jianlin announced a multi-billion dollar development project in Paris.
Italy: Zhang Jindong of Suning paid US$310m for control of Italy soccer team Inter Milan in Italy.
Australia: Jiang Zhaobai of Shanghai Pengxin had its bid for Australia cattle empire Kidman rejected on national interest grounds.
Singapore: Jack Ma paid US$1bn for a controlling stake in Singapore-based e-commerce platform Lazada, active across SE Asia.
Domestic: Wang Xing’s Meituan and Zhang Tao’s Dianping merged to create a US$20bn behemoth. Liu Qiangdong of JD took control of online grocer platform Yihaodian from Walmart in exchange for a US$1.5bn investment in JD. Fan Min’s Ctrip merged with Qunar.
De-listing abroad and relisting in China.Jason Jiang Nanchun of FocusMedia and Shi Yuzhu of Giant Network listed domestically after delisting in the US, doubling their wealth in the process. Companies in the process of seeking listings domestically after delisting abroad include Wang Jianlin’s property arm, Zhou Hongyi’s Qihoo 360, Zhou Xin’s eHouse and Xu Hang’s Mindray Medical.
Candidates for Number One. Rupert Hoogewerf said, “Wang Jianlin’s potential domestic listing of his property arm could give his wealth a lift, however his biggest competitor for top spot Jack Ma has an imminent listing of financial services unit Ant Financial, which could well propel him past Wang. Others include Pony Ma with super-app WeChat, Ding Lei with his booming online games platform, Guo Guangchang with his aggressive globalization model, Xu Jiayin with his diversification into new industries and Yao Zhenhua with his financial investment model.”
Upcoming IPOs with big expectations. Jack Ma’s Ant Financial, Cheng Wei’s taxi-hailing app Didi, Wang Xing and Zhang Tao’s Meituan, Cai Wensheng and Wu Xinhong’s photo-enhancing app Meitu.This past year has seen a surge of express delivery companies go one step closer to IPO.
China'sthirdboard-NEEQ. Of the than 9000 companies now floated on the ‘New Third Board’, ChiNext, 32 individuals made the Forest City Hurun Rich List, led by JD Capital’s Wu Gang and Huang Xiaojie, and ChinaEquity’s Wang Chaoyong & wife Li Yifei.
Guo Guangchang of Fosun. Despite ‘helping’ Chinese officials with an investigation for three days in December, Guo has remained one of China’s most significant investors, splurging on international projects following the One Belt One Road and in September becoming the first private company allowed to buy a US$6.9bn controlling stake in a high-speed rail project.
Industry Analysis
In terms of those industries with the most rich listers, the hottest wealth-creating industries this year were financial investments and IT. It has been a bad year for manufacturing, real estate and textiles.
Table: Biggest wealth-creating industries
Industry / 2016 / 2015 / Richest Individual / Company / Wealth US$m1 - / Manufacturing / 26% / 28% / He Xiangjian & He Jianfeng / Midea / 12,000
2 - / Real Estate / 15% / 16% / Wang Jianlin & family / Wanda / 32,000
3 - / IT / 12% / 11% / Jack Ma & family / Alibaba / 30,500
4 - / Finance + Investments / 11% / 9% / Jack Ma & family / Ant Financial / 30,500
5 - / Pharmaceuticals / 6.6% / 6.8% / Sun Piaoyang & / Hengrui / 6,600
Zhong Huijuan *
6↑ / Retail / 4.7% / 3.6% / Jack Ma & family / Alibaba / 30,500
7↓ / Natural Resources / 4.5% / 4.8% / Wang Guangxi & Guo Tianshu* / Wintime / 3,700
8↑ / Food & Beverages / 3.3% / 3.3% / Zong Qinghou & family / Wahaha / 16,700
9↓ / Apparel / 3.2% / 3.6% / Zhou Jianping & family / HLA / 5,200
9↑ / Media / 3.2% / 3% / Pony Ma / Tencent / 25,000
Entertainment
11↑ / Services / 2.4% / 1.8% / Yu Huijiao & / YTO / 2,080
Zhang Xiaojuan
12↑ / New Energy / 2% / 1.7% / Zhu Gongshan / GCL Poly / 3,900
12↓ / Agriculture / 2 % / 2.3% / Liu Yonghao & family / New Hope / 6,300
14↓ / Iron + Steel / 1.9% / 2 % / Shen Wenrong / Sha Steel / 3,000
15 - / Construction / 1.8% / 1.5% / Yan Hao & family / China Pacific Construction / 15,300
Source: Forest City Hurun Rich List 2016