Jack Ma’s fall from the title of China’s richest man is due to increased scrutiny by Chinese regulators on his businesses, Alibaba and Ant Group.
As a result, he has been dethroned from the top spot in the latest Hurun Global Rich List. The report reveals that Ma and his family now rank fourth, with other entrepreneurs surpassing them in terms of wealth.
Ma’s troubles began when he delivered a critical speech about China’s regulatory system on October 23, 2020. This speech led to the suspension of Ant Group’s $37 billion initial public offering (IPO) and heightened regulatory scrutiny of the tech sector. Alibaba, in particular, faced an official antitrust investigation in December.
Chinese authorities also began tightening their control over the fintech sector, resulting in demands for Ant Group to restructure some of its operations into a financial holding company subject to traditional financial regulations.
Ma’s disappearance from public view for approximately three months fueled speculation about his whereabouts, but he made a brief video appearance in January.
The current wealthiest individual in China, Zhong Shanshan, owes his top ranking to the robust performance of his companies, Nongfu Spring and Beijing Wantai Biological Pharmacy Enterprise. Tencent’s Pony Ma and Pinduoduo’s Collin Huang have also experienced significant increases in their wealth, surpassing Jack Ma and his family.
The founder of ByteDance, Zhang Yiming, has entered the top five rankings of Chinese billionaires on the Hurun Global Rich List for the first time, with an estimated personal wealth of $54 billion.
