The online version of Forbes magazine yesterday reviewed 15 of the "Youngest Asian Billionaires" under the age of 40 in 2008, eight of whom are from mainland China, six from India and their total assets reached 31.3 billion US dollars. The eight entrepreneurs from mainland China who were selected include Yang Huizhen.
Besides Yang Huizhen, others selected include Huang Guangyu, Peng Xiaofeng, Xian Yang, Li Yanhong, Zhang Chengfei, Ding Lei, etc.
1. Yang Huizhen: Net worth 7.4 billion US dollars, 26 years old, nationality: China, place of residence: Shunde, China.
She inherited 58% of the shares of Country Garden Holdings Co., Ltd., a real estate developer, from her father Yang Guoqiang. Now, she has become China's richest woman. Yang Huizhen once studied at Ohio State University in the United States, and her wedding video has been uploaded to YouTube.
2. Huang Guangyu: Net worth 3.5 billion US dollars, 39 years old, nationality: China, place of residence: Beijing, China.
This native of Guangdong controls Gome Electrical Appliances, one of China's two major electronics chain stores. However, at least from the founder's net worth point of view, he still lags behind his rival Zhang Jindong from Suning Appliances. In addition, he continues to invest his assets in real estate and other areas. In 2007, Huang Guangyu jointly established a 500 million US dollar investment fund with Bear Stearns for investments in other retail industries.
3. Peng Xiaofeng: Net worth 2.5 billion US dollars, 33 years old, nationality: China, place of residence: Xinyu, China.
He started from a trading company which later grew into a family-style labor protection products manufacturing company with 12,000 employees. When Peng Xiaofeng saw that no Chinese company was producing the key component chips for solar cells, he began producing solar cell panels for export. In 2005, he invested 30 million US dollars of his own money and 80 million US dollars raised through corporate financing to build several factories in his hometown of Jiangxi Province. His solar energy company, LDK Solar Co., Ltd., successfully listed on the NASDAQ market in 2007.
4. Malvinder and Shivinder Singh brothers: Net worth 2.5 billion US dollars, ages 35 and 33 respectively, nationality: India, place of residence: Delhi, India.
Both brothers graduated from Duke University and control Ranbaxy Laboratories, a pharmaceutical company founded by their grandfather. Malvinder is the CEO of Ranbaxy, while Shivinder runs Fortis Healthcare, an Indian medical chain store.
5. Zhu Linzhao: Net worth 1.9 billion US dollars, 38 years old, Hong Konger, place of residence: Hong Kong.
She is the head of HBA International, which produces flavors and fragrances used in cigarettes, cleaning agents, beverages, dairy products, and cosmetics. Zhu Linzhao founded the company ten years ago and achieved its listing through a backdoor listing. At the beginning of this year, she sold 9% of the company's equity but still holds two-thirds of the shares. She also holds many leadership positions in local industry organizations.
6. Vikas Oberoi: Net worth 1.7 billion US dollars, 37 years old, nationality: India, place of residence: Mumbai, India.
In 1988, he took control of Oberoi Constructions, a real estate development company founded by his father. Last year, Morgan Stanley spent 152 million US dollars to acquire shares of the company. Currently, the company's projects include a supermarket and a five-star hotel to be managed by Westin Hotel Company.
7. Xian Yang: Net worth 1.6 billion US dollars, 34 years old, nationality: China, place of residence: Panzhihua, China.
Xian Yang graduated from the Sichuan People's Police School and once worked in customs. In 2000, he engaged in coke trade and later began coal production. In September 2007, his Hengding Industrial Company successfully listed in Hong Kong.
8. Anurag Dikshit: Net worth 1.6 billion US dollars, 36 years old, nationality: India, place of residence: Gibraltar.
Initially a development engineer, he later became a tycoon in the online gambling industry. He holds a degree in computer science and engineering from the Indian Institute of Technology in Delhi. Ruth Parasol, an American and the founder of the online casino operator PartyGaming, launched Starluck Casino online in 1997. The following year, 25-year-old Dikshit joined the company and wrote gambling software for it. Due to new American laws prohibiting financial groups from engaging in the online gambling industry, the company's share price fell after reaching its peak in 2005. Afterwards, he sold most of his shares and left the company board, but he remains a major shareholder.
9. Robin Li: Net worth 1.4 billion US dollars, age 39, nationality: China, place of residence: Beijing, China.
Robin Li is the co-founder and current CEO of Baidu, China's most popular search engine. Li worked at Infoseek, a pioneer in search engines in Silicon Valley, in the 1990s. He founded Baidu in 2000, and Baidu successfully listed on NASDAQ in 2005. Robin Li has announced that Baidu will enter the e-commerce market.
10. Pony Ma: Age 36, nationality: China, place of residence: Shenzhen, China.
Pony Ma's Tencent is China's most popular instant messaging software company, attracting many advertisers including McDonald's and Nike.
11. Girish Tanti: Net worth 1.3 billion US dollars, age 38, nationality: India, place of residence: Pune, India.
Girish Tanti is the youngest of the four Tanti brothers who co-founded Suzlon Energy, which has now become the world's most valuable wind energy company. As a director of Suzlon, Girish owns 12% of the shares and is responsible for international business and human resources. It is said that the Tanti family started in the textile industry and entered the wind energy industry just to save costs.
12. Zhang Chengfei: Net worth 1.3 billion US dollars, age 38, nationality: China, place of residence: Dongguan, China.
Zhang Chengfei and his sister Zhang Yin are the founders of Nine Dragons Paper, where he currently serves as the executive vice president responsible for daily operations.
13. Sameer Gehlaut: Net worth 1.2 billion US dollars, age 34, nationality: India, place of residence: Mumbai, India.
India's youngest self-made billionaire. After graduating from the prestigious Indian Institute of Technology in Delhi, Gehlaut co-founded Indiabulls, an online intermediary, with two university classmates in 1999. He is currently the leader and largest shareholder of the company, and other early shareholders include Mittal and the well-known investment fund Farallon Capital. Indiabulls successfully listed in 2004 and then turned to the real estate industry, recently transforming into a diversified group.
14. Jung Yong-jin: Net worth 1 billion US dollars, age 39, nationality: South Korea, place of residence: Seoul, South Korea.
Jung Yong-jin is the only son of Lee Myung-hee, the president of Shinsegae Department Store in South Korea. He currently serves as the vice president of the company, responsible for expanding business in China. He was once married to South Korean actress Ko Hyun-jung, but they divorced in 2003. His uncle is former Samsung Group president Lee Kun-hee.
15. William Ding: Net worth 1 billion US dollars, age 37, nationality: China, place of residence: Guangzhou, China.
Ding Lei was China's richest man in 2003. Online gaming has become one of the main businesses of NetEase, which he founded.
Source: China News Service