The wealth of China’s 100 richest people shrank by more than a third in 2022 as the country’s zero-covid policy, faltering economic growth and a push for “shared prosperity” slashed the valuations of the country’s top companies and ate into her private wealth. The wealth of the nation’s richest tycoons shrank 39 percent to $907.1 billion in 2022 from $1.48 trillion the previous year, according to the Forbes Rich List, the biggest drop since the publication began compiling it. the list more than 20 years ago. Only two of the names on the list saw their wealth increase, Forbes said, while 79 billionaires became poorer. Forbes blamed the drop on Beijing’s tech crackdown, its policies to zero in on Covid from an economic perspective, slow economic growth and concerns over the outcome of the 20th Communist Party Congress in October. The slide in the value of the renminbi further reduced assets. Zhong Shanshan, the chairman of Nongfu Spring, the bottled water company, remained at the top of the list with a fortune of $62.3 billion, down just 5 percent from the previous year. Robin Zeng, chairman of CATL, the world’s largest maker of electric vehicle batteries, saw his fortune drop 43% to $28.9 billion, while Pony Ma, chief executive of internet giant Tencent, saw his share price which has fallen to a four-year low. year, he saw his wealth more than halve. Alibaba founder Jack Ma also saw his personal fortune nearly halved after the value of his company fell by about 60% in the past year. Shein founder Chris Xu was a notable newcomer, with a fortune estimated at $10 billion, while Evergrand chairman Hui Ka Yan, once one of the country’s richest people, dropped out of the country’s 100 richest.
