Soft drink maker emerges as mainland's richest man
Disclosing that his stake in Wahaha is twice earlier estimates lifts net worth to US$21.6b
Zong Qinghou, head of China's third-largest beverage maker, is now the mainland's richest man.
He disclosed that his stake in closely held Hangzhou Wahaha Group is more than double previous estimates, underscoring the opacity of wealth in the country.
The 66-year-old soda pop and juice tycoon owns more than 80 per cent of Wahaha, the company's spokesman, Shan Qining, said in an interview. That stake elevates Zong's net worth to US$21.6 billion, according to the Bloomberg Billionaires Index.
He is now US$13.4 billion wealthier than Robin Li, founder of Baidu, China's biggest search engine. Li's net worth has dropped 3.8 per cent year to date.
Zong, a chain-smoking member of the Chinese legislature who says he spends just US$20 a day, ranks No 23 globally and trails only Hong Kong's Li Ka-shing and India's Mukesh Ambani in Asia.
Wahaha has benefited from decades of rapid economic growth on the mainland. The company has about 60 factories in 29 provinces across the country, making soft drinks, food, baby formula and children's apparel, its website shows.
