Who is China’s richest man, wealthier than 90 countries?

In a world where millions go to bed hungry every night, some individuals earn more than entire nations. One such person is from China, reportedly wealthier than 90 countries (GDP). His wealth surpasses the national incomes of these countries, yet he doesn’t own vast factories or come from inherited wealth.

Instead, he is Zhang Yiming, the creator of the social media app TikTok. He hails from China, and the app boasts over 200 million users in the United States alone, though it faces potential bans there.

‘I’m not very social’: Who is Zhang Yiming?

In 2021, Mr Zhang resigned from his roles as CEO and chairman of ByteDance, TikTok’s parent company.

He did so when other founders were stepping down due to Chinese regulators clamping down on the tech economy.

At the time, Mr Zhang said he left because the daily challenges of the CEO role were a barrier to research and innovation.

“I’m not very social, preferring solitary activities like being online, reading, listening to music, and contemplating what may be possible,” he said in a memo, according to Reuters.

“I’m more interested in analyzing organizational and market principles, and leveraging these theories to further reduce management work, rather than managing people.”

His wealth has swelled 10-fold in six years, with Forbes listing his worth as around $6 billion in 2018.