Almost a quarter of China's richest people fell off the Hurun Global Rich List of billionaires in 2018, a record amount whose decline coincided with big declines in mainland stocks.
Over 200 Chinese billionaires did not figure in the latest rankings, which were unveiled Tuesday in Beijing, pushing the total number of billionaires living in China down from 819 to 658.
China, which has topped the Hurun Global Rich List since 2016 for its total number of billionaires, created 52 new entries on the list last year.
One of the most impressive new names was Huang Zheng, CEO of e-commerce platform Pinduoduo, who became the fastest person ever to accumulate 10 billion U.S. dollars' of wealth from scratch.
Pinduoduo listed in the U.S. last year at a valuation of 30 billion U.S. dollars. Huang, 39 years old, is worth 15 billion U.S. dollars, just three years after establishing the company.
Alibaba founder Ma Yun extended his lead at the top of the China rich list, increasing his fortune by 22 percent to 39 billion U.S. dollars, making him the world's 22nd richest man.
Hurun Report Chairman Rupert Hoogewerf said, "a 23 percent drop in the Chinese stock markets coupled with a six percent drop in the Chinese yuan were the main causes of the dropoffs in China."
Among China's 10 richest people, Ma Yun was the only billionaire to see his fortune increase in 2018.
Tencent founder Ma Huateng saw his personal wealth fall 19 percent, while Wang Jianlin, the chief executive of Wanda Group and China's richest man just two years ago, saw his personal fortune fall by 37 percent to 17 billion U.S. dollars.
Worldwide, a record 430 billionaires dropped off the Hurun Rich List, with 2,470 known billionaires led by Amazon's Jeff Bezos, the world's richest man. His personal fortune hit 147 billion U.S. dollars last year, with Bezos amassing 100 billion U.S. dollars in just three years.
Beijing remains the world's billionaire capital for the fourth year running, with 103 residents making the list. Beijing has 28 fewer billionaires than it did last year, but still eleven more than second-placed New York.
Eighty-five of the billionaires on the list are aged 40 or under, while 15.5 percent of them are women.
China continues to lead in terms of self-made billionaires, with 74 percent of its names on the list making their own fortunes with no parental support.
