Zhang Yiming, the 44-year-old founder of ByteDance, has become China's wealthiest person for the first time, according to the latest Hurun China Rich List. With a personal fortune of $49.3 billion, Zhang surpassed the "bottled water king" Zhong Shanshan, who had held the top spot for three consecutive years.

Zhong's wealth fell 24% to $47.9 billion following a public backlash against his company, Nongfu Spring, earlier this year. Zhang's rise was propelled by the continued success of ByteDance, the parent company of the global social media phenomenon TikTok, whose profits grew approximately 30% last year.

The annual list underscores a broader shift in the source of China's greatest fortunes, moving away from traditional sectors like real estate toward technology, consumer electronics, and new energy. Tencent CEO Pony Ma Huateng took third place with $44.4 billion, while Pinduoduo founder Colin Huang ranked fourth.

The overall landscape for China's ultra-wealthy has contracted. The number of individuals with wealth exceeding 5 billion yuan ($700 million) fell by 12% to 1,094, and the billionaire count dropped by 142 to 753—a decline of more than 30% from its 2021 peak. The combined wealth of those on the list shrank by 10% to $3 trillion.

"The Hurun China Rich List has shrunk for an unprecedented third year running, as China’s economy and stock markets had a difficult year," said Rupert Hoogewerf, chairman and chief researcher of the Hurun Report.

Hoogewerf also highlighted the increasingly international outlook of China's new entrepreneurial generation, citing Zhang's global success with TikTok and Huang's creation of the international e-commerce platform Temu. "The stories of the individuals on the Hurun China Rich List tell the story of the Chinese economy," he noted.