Alibaba's Jack Ma tops Hurun’s China Rich List   

胡润2014百富榜发布 马云家族1500亿元成中国首富

Alibaba Group rings the IPO opening bell at the NYSE on Friday, Sept. 19, 2014. (Photo: CNS)

(ECNS) – Alibaba's blockbuster IPO has made co-founder and chairman Jack Ma the richest man on the Hurun China Rich List.

According to the list released Tuesday by the Hurun Report, a leading authority on China's wealthy, 50-year-old Jack Ma has shot to the top position with a net worth of 162.7 billion yuan (about $26 billion) by August 15.

Alibaba Group Holding Ltd went public on the New York Stock Exchange at $68 a share on Sept 19, raising $21.8 billion. Ma cashed in more than $850 million by selling his shares in the IPO.

Ranking second on the list with a net worth of 145 billion yuan ($23 billion) is Wang Jianlin, chairman of Dalian Wanda Group, one of China's largest real estate developers.

A net worth of 125 billion yuan ($20 billion) makes Hanergy Holding Group chairman Li Hejun the third richest person on the list.

Rupert Hoogewerf, publisher of the Hurun Report and known by his Chinese name Hurun, said billionaires in the IT sector have amassed more wealth with multiple IPOs this year, while the real estate, manufacturing and finance sectors have larger numbers of billionaires.

Hoogewerf expects more billionaires in newer industries in the future, such as IT, bioscience, new energy, new media and entertainment.