The dynamic landscape of wealth in Asia has consistently captured global attention, with an impressive array of individuals making their mark on the Forbes real-time list of billionaires. But have you ever wondered who tops this list of the richest people in Asia?
To no one’s surprise, as of January 2024, Asia's richest person is Mukesh Ambani, with an astonishing net worth of $96.4 billion. The list of the richest Asians goes on to extend beyond borders. This article presents a rundown of Asia's wealthiest people in 2024.
The Top 10 Richest People in Asia
The real-time billionaires list worldwide compiled by Forbes shows the top 10 richest people in Asia as of January 10, 2024.
A Deeper Insight: Richest People in Asia in 2024
Mukesh Ambani
· Source of wealth: Diversified
· Age: 66
· Residence: Mumbai, India
· Citizenship: India
Mukesh Ambani, the chairman and managing director of Reliance Industries, is the richest man in Asia. He ventured into the Indian Premier League (IPL) with the ownership of Mumbai Indians in 2008. While Jio, Reliance's telecom and broadband service, has drawn close to 450 million subscribers already, the recent debut of Jio Financial Services in August reflects the company's expanding horizons. Further, BlackRock and Jio Financial Services announced an agreement to form Jio BlackRock in July 2023, a joint venture to bring advanced and innovative investment solutions to investors in India.
Gautam Adani
· Source of wealth: Infrastructure, commodities, self-made
· Age: 61
· Residence: Ahmedabad, India
· Citizenship: India
Gautam Adani heads the Adani Group, a $32 billion enterprise spanning ports, airports, energy, and green initiatives. Starting as a trading firm in 1988, he is now among the richest people in Asia. He showcased his prowess as India's premier airport operator and controller of Gujarat's significant Mundra Port. Moreover, his strategic acquisition of Holcim's Indian assets in 2022 propelled him to the position of India's second-largest cement producer.
Zhong Shanshan
· Source of wealth: Beverages, pharmaceuticals, self-made
· Age: 68
· Residence: Hangzhou, China
· Citizenship: China
Zhong Shanshan, the mind behind Nongfu Spring, a bottled water firm, ranks as the second richest man in Asia and at the top as the most affluent Chinese. From construction work to journalism and beverage sales, his journey led him to entrepreneurship. Additionally, he holds sway over Beijing Wantai Biological Pharmacy, a producer of swift diagnostic tests for Covid-19. As per estimations at the end of 2022, Zhong Shanshan maintained his spot as the richest in China in the previous year, with a $62.3 billion fortune.
Colin Zheng Huang
· Source of wealth: E-commerce
· Age: 43
· Residence: Shanghai, China
· Citizenship: China
Colin Huang is the founder of PDD Holdings, a well-known Chinese e-commerce organisation to have changed its name from Pinduoduo in February, 2023. Despite having stepped down as chairman over a couple of years ago, Huang still owns about 28% of the company shares. Huang has also founded an online gaming Xinyoudi, and another e-commerce platform known as Ouku.com. In a list of China’s 100 richest people compiled by Forbes in 2022, Huang ranked at the ninth spot.
Zhang Yiming
· Source of wealth: TikTok, self-made
· Age: 39
· Residence: Beijing, China
· Citizenship: China
Zhang Yiming, the driving force behind the Chinese tech giant ByteDance, is best recognised for birthing the wildly popular app TikTok, which boasts a staggering user count of over 1 billion worldwide. He maintains a 20 percent stake in ByteDance, whose value has faced uncertainty due to potential US TikTok bans. Beyond TikTok's fame, ByteDance spans diverse sectors like news, education, and gaming.
Prajogo Pangestu
· Source of wealth: PT Barito Pacific
· Age: 79
· Residence: Jakarta, Indonesia
· Citizenship: Indonesia
Prajogo Pangestu, the energy and petrochemical tycoon, is the wealthiest man in Indonesia. Although he started with the timber business, today, his company, PT Barito Pacific, is among the leaders in petrochemical, plastic production, mining, and thermal energy in Indonesia. His wealth significantly increased in 2023 as his group's two companies, PT Petrindo Jaya Kreasi and Barito Renewables Energy, went public.
Tadashi Yanai & family
· Source of wealth: Fashion retail, self-made
· Age: 74
· Residence: Tokyo, Japan
· Citizenship: Japan
Tadashi Yanai is the mastermind behind Fast Retailing, a prominent clothing empire listed in Tokyo, which oversees the Uniqlo chain. Fast Retailing's portfolio extends to brands such as Theory, Helmut Lang, J Brand, and GU. Notably, Uniqlo, the flagship brand, boasts a vast presence with over 2,400 stores dispersed across 25 countries, making Tadashi rank among the top 10 richest people in Asia. Uniqlo has recently announced the appointment of a chief operating officer, Daisuke Tsukagoshi, to aid Tadashi Yanai.
Li Ka-Shing
· Source of wealth: Diversified, self-made
· Age: 95
· Residence: Hong Kong
· Citizenship: Hong Kong
Li Ka-Shing, one of Asia's richest persons, began his journey at 21 when he launched Cheung Kong Plastics, named after the Yangtze River, with $6,500 in savings and loans from relatives back in 1950. His Li Ka Shing Foundation's generosity is remarkable, having donated over $3.8 billion to various causes, with the lion's share directed towards Greater China. Notably, CK Hutchison Holdings, controlled by Li Ka-shing, and the Vodafone Group have recently agreed to merge their respective British telecommunications businesses to make the country’s biggest mobile operator.
Shiv Nadar
· Source of wealth: Software services
· Age: 78
· Residence: New Delhi, India
· Citizenship: India
Shiv Nadar, the founder of HCL Technologies, is one of India's most prominent names in IT and software. He is currently chairman emeritus of HCL Technologies, as he stepped down from company chairman in 2020. Besides his business acumen and leadership capabilities, Nadar is known for philanthropy. He donated over Rs2000 crore in 2023, around Rs5.6 crore per day. His total donation to his Shiv Nadar foundation is over $1 billion. He has been awarded Padma Bhushan, the third-highest civilian award in India, by the Indian Government.
Ma Huateng
· Source of wealth: internet media, self-made
· Age: 51
· Residence: Shenzhen, China
· Citizenship: China
Ma Huateng, known as Pony Ma, guides Tencent Holdings, the Chinese internet titan. He oversees WeChat, a widely used messaging app with 1.3 billion users, making him one of Asia's richest people. Beyond that, Tencent holds substantial interests in global gaming with a stake in Epic Games and ranks among the top video game publishers. Ma's influence spreads to Tesla and Spotify through Tencent's investments. Notably, he has recently revealed plans for Tencent to develop new artificial intelligence (AI) technologies for the broader human good.
William Ding
· Source of wealth: Online games
· Age: 51
· Residence: Hangzhou, China
· Citizenship: China
William Ding is the CEO at NetEase, one of the biggest online gaming companies in the world. The games on offer from the organisation include Fantasy Westward, Eggy Party, and Justice Mobile, the last one being a battle game that uses AI to create story lines. As registered back in 2003, Ding was the richest man and the first internet gaming billionaire in China. Twenty years later, amidst a tumultuous economic atmosphere in China, Ding had managed to add $12.2 billion in his net worth between October 2022 and July 2023.
Ding contributes to sustainable agriculture as well, as NetEase's e-commerce branch Yanxuan sells pork sourced from its own farms.
Zeng Robin
· Source of wealth: Batteries
· Age: 54
· Residence: Hong Kong
· Citizenship: Hong Kong
Robin Zeng, the mastermind behind Contemporary Amperex Technology (CATL), a major electric vehicle battery supply player, takes the reins as founder and chairman. His achievements span business and scholarship, armed with a PhD from the Chinese Academy of Sciences' Institute of Physics. On January 17, 2023, CATL and NIO—an automobile manufacturer based in China—signed a five-year comprehensive strategic cooperation agreement, furthering their partnership.
https://www.forbesindia.com/article/explainers/top-10-richest-people-asia/88245/1
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