China’s billionaires had a rough 2018 amid slowing economy and rising geopolitical tensions, report finds
- The number of Chinese billionaires fell by 48 to 325, according to UBS and PwC Billionaire Insights Report
- As many as 103 individuals fell off the billionaires list in 2018, while 56 new names reached the threshold
China’s wealthiest citizens had a rough year in 2018, with fewer either becoming or maintaining their status as billionaires due to the country’s slowing economic growth and escalating global geopolitical tensions.
The number of Chinese billionaires fell by 48, to 325, last year, according to UBS and PwC Billionaire Insights Report 2019 released on Friday in New York.
The report echoed the Hurun Global Rich List released earlier this year that a record number of Chinese billionaires had dropped off the list as slumping stock markets worldwide wiped out a combined US$1 trillion from the fortunes of the world’s wealthiest individuals.
As many as 103 Chinese individuals fell off the UBS/PwC billionaires list in 2018, while 56 new names reached the threshold. One Chinese billionaire changed his nationality last year, according to the report.
The group’s estimated total net worth also declined by 12.3 per cent in the period, the biggest drop among the wealthy around the world. A depreciation of about 6 per cent in the Chinese yuan against the US dollar accounted for roughly half that slide.
The drop in the number of Chinese billionaires and the value in their total assets marked a departure since 2014, when UBS and PwC began tracking billionaires globally, a group which now stands at about 2,100.
