MOSCOW (Sputnik) — The number of billionaires in mainland China exceeds that of their peers in the United States by 59, making China lead with a total of 594 billionaires, according to a 2016 Rich List published by the Hurun Report media group on Thursday.
"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," Rupert Hoogewerf, the Hurun Report chairman, was quoted as saying in a press release accompanying the Rich List.
Yao Zhenhua of Baoneng recorded the biggest rise this year, jumping up 200 places to reach the fourth place on the list, increasing his net worth by nine folds with an total of $17.2 billion. Beijing real estate queen Chen Lihua is leading the list of the most successful business women. Ninety-five percent of China's richest are self-made.
Hurun Report's rich list is considered to be the most popular and accurate assessment of wealth in China.