Real estate magnate Wang Jianlin has tumbled from his position as China’s wealthiest man, according to the country’s best known rich list, underscoring how a crackdown on leverage-fuelled companies pursuing foreign acquisitions has dented entrepreneurs’ fortunes.
Mr Wang built Dalian Wanda from a real estate developer into a global empire spanning cinema chains, Hollywood studios and Spanish football. But its shares tumbled this year when authorities instructed banks to check their lending to acquisitive groups, and it sold off a string of assets.
He has fallen to fifth place in this year’s Hurun rich list with a net worth of $23bn, down more than a quarter from last year. Xu Jiayin, head of property group Evergrande, now tops the rankings with a fortune of $43bn. Mr Xu, also known as Hui Ka-yan, has focused on the domestic market and funded domestic football.