Zhang Yiming Surpasses Beverage Tycoon Zhong Shanshan to Become China’s Richest

ByteDance Cofounder Secures Top Spot with $45.6 Billion Fortune Amid Global Challenges

Zhang Yiming, cofounder of ByteDance, the parent company of TikTok, has officially overtaken beverage mogul Zhong Shanshan to become China’s wealthiest person. With a net worth of $45.6 billion, Zhang now leads the ranks ahead of Zhong, whose wealth stands at $43.3 billion. Despite stepping down from his role as chairman of ByteDance in 2021, Zhang’s fortune continues to thrive, buoyed by his significant stake in the tech giant, which is currently valued at $217 billion.

ByteDance’s valuation, though lower than its peak of over $400 billion in 2021, still places Zhang firmly at the top of China’s rich list. Geopolitical tensions and a tech market downturn have impacted the company’s value, but ByteDance’s strong performance in China has helped maintain Zhang’s vast fortune. The company’s revenue grew to $120 billion in 2023, a significant jump from $80 billion the previous year, with earnings before interest, tax, depreciation, and amortization (EBITDA) soaring to over $40 billion. Much of ByteDance’s revenue stems from digital ads on Douyin, the Chinese version of TikTok, which boasts more than 700 million daily active users.

Zhong Shanshan, chairman of Nongfu Spring, had held the title of China’s richest for three consecutive years. However, challenges in Nongfu Spring’s bottled water business have caused a sharp decline in his wealth. The company’s shares, listed on the Hong Kong Stock Exchange, have fallen by 7.5% since the release of its 2024 interim report, which revealed an 18.5% drop in bottled water sales. This dip in revenue shaved $4.4 billion off Zhong’s fortune, marking the company’s lowest share price since its 2020 IPO.

Zhong briefly lost his top spot in early August to Colin Huang, founder of PDD Holdings, but regained it after PDD’s shares plunged by 30% following management’s forecast of slower profit growth.

Zhang’s rise to the top comes as ByteDance faces significant challenges, particularly in the U.S., where the company is locked in a legal battle over a potential ban-or-divest order signed by President Joe Biden. The order, rooted in concerns over national security risks tied to ByteDance’s Chinese ownership, requires TikTok’s sale by January 2025 or a U.S. ban. This uncertainty has pushed some ByteDance investors, including billionaire Philippe Laffont’s Coatue Management, to consider selling their stakes in private markets. Laffont recently stepped down from ByteDance’s board and was replaced by French telecom billionaire Xavier Niel.

Despite these hurdles abroad, Zhang, now based in Singapore, continues to benefit from ByteDance’s profitability in China. Glen Anderson, cofounder and CEO of U.S.-based Rainmaker Securities, pointed out that ByteDance’s strong domestic performance has helped prevent a more significant decline in the company’s valuation. Zhang, known for keeping a low profile and describing himself as “not very social,” handed over leadership to his former college roommate, Liang Rubo, in 2021, but his influence and fortune remain deeply tied to ByteDance’s ongoing success.

As Zhang Yiming surpasses Zhong Shanshan in wealth, his journey underscores the evolving dynamics of China’s economic landscape, where tech titans increasingly dominate the top echelons of wealth, even in the face of geopolitical headwinds and global market volatility.

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