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| Jack Ma, the founder of e-commerce titan Alibaba, once again topped the list after his wealth surged a whopping 45 percent to US$58.8 billion as online shopping firms. (Photo by=AFP/Ludovic MARIN) |
[Asia News Communication = Reporter Reakkana] China's super-wealthy have earned a record US$1.5 trillion in 2020, more than the past five years combined, as e-commerce and gaming boomed during the pandemic lockdown, an annual rich list said on Tuesday (Oct 20).
An extra 257 people also joined the billionaires club in the world's No.2 economy by August, following two years of shrinking membership, according to the closely watched Hurun Report. The country now has a total of 878 billionaires. The US had 626 people in the top bracket at the start of the year, according to Hurun in its February global list. The report found that around 2,000 individuals have a net worth of about 2 billion yuan (US$300 million) in August, giving them a joint net worth of US$4 trillion.
Jack Ma, the founder of e-commerce titan Alibaba, once again topped the list after his wealth surged a whopping 45 percent to US$58.8 billion as online shopping firms saw a surge in business owing to people being shut indoors for months during strict lockdown to contain the virus."The world has never seen this much wealth created in just one year," Hurun Report chief researcher Rupert Hoogewerf said in a statement. This year's list shows China was "moving away from traditional sectors like manufacturing and real estate, towards the new economy", he added.
