Mainland China Adds 70 New Billionaires — Which Industries Are They Coming From?

Under the combined momentum of business innovation and wealth succession, a new wave of billionaires is emerging at a faster pace.

UBS’s 2025 Billionaire Report, released in December, highlights the steady rise of a new generation of billionaires. Over the past four years, the number of individuals entering the billionaire ranks for the first time has continued to climb.

Using UBS’s definition, “new billionaires” are individuals whose personal wealth has reached or surpassed US$1 billion for the first time. The report shows that in 2025, the world added 287 new billionaires, bringing the global total to 2,919.

Which industries are producing most of these new billionaires—and how is China’s billionaire landscape changing?

Self-made billionaires dominate

Among the 287 new billionaires worldwide, 196 are self-made entrepreneurs who entered the ranks through startups and business success. Another 91 became billionaires primarily through inherited family wealth.

In 2025, self-made new billionaires drew from an even wider range of wealth sources, with growth largely supported by robust entrepreneurial activity around the world.

By comparison, the number of inheritance-driven new billionaires was smaller, yet the total value of inherited wealth reached a historic high.

According to the report, the 91 heirs inherited a combined US$297.8 billion. Even with fewer heirs than before, the total inherited wealth rose 36% from 2024.

Mainland China adds 70 new billionaires

China continues to lead the Asia-Pacific region in billionaire wealth. In 2025, total billionaire wealth in China rose by US$321.4 billion to US$1.8 trillion—an increase of 22.2% year over year.

Mainland China added 70 new billionaires in 2025, lifting the total to 470—second only to the United States. Notably, 98% of mainland China’s billionaires are self-made entrepreneurs, a higher share than in other major economies.

At the same time, UBS notes that market volatility pushed 24 Chinese billionaires below the US$1 billion threshold, and two billionaires passed away during the year.

The report also highlights specific individuals. The Zhang brothers, founders of Chinese fast-food and beverage chain Mixue Ice Cream & Tea, successfully converted value into personal wealth after the company’s IPO on the Hong Kong Stock Exchange in March 2025, bringing them into the billionaire club.

In industrials, major drivers of wealth gains included BYD founders Wang Chuanfu and Lü Xiangyang, who helped propel the sector to the world’s second-highest wealth growth. The report also notes that Tang Hao, a former investor in software company AppLovin, benefited meaningfully from the company’s share-price rise.

Which industries are they coming from?

The newly added self-made billionaires span a broad mix of sectors, including marketing software, genomics, food and beverage, infrastructure, and liquefied natural gas (LNG).

Looking ahead, technology is positioned to become the single largest industry by billionaire wealth. Continued expansion is being fueled by strong performance from companies benefiting directly from the AI wave—either through control, investment exposure, or strategic positioning.

As share prices climbed for companies associated with the AI revolution—such as Meta, Oracle, and Nvidia—total wealth held by tech billionaires grew by nearly a quarter (23.8%), adding US$583.5 billion to reach roughly US$3 trillion. This now rivals the consumer and retail sector and is on track to become the largest pool of billionaire wealth.

Among U.S. tech leaders, the six fastest-growing fortunes collectively rose by US$171 billion year over year—an increase of more than 25%.

Tech billionaires in Greater China also saw a rebound. Following the early-2025 debut of DeepSeek’s large language model, momentum across related tech companies strengthened, and market enthusiasm around the “Made in China” technology narrative returned.

Across regions, billionaire priorities differ. In Europe, the Middle East, and Africa, climate change, poverty, and inequality rank highly. In the Americas, technology and AI are viewed as the top challenge, followed by education. In Asia-Pacific, technology and AI remain the central focus.

More billionaires are considering relocation

The report notes that tariffs, geopolitical conflict, and policy uncertainty have become the most widely cited risks for billionaires today. Over the next year, the top concerns are tariffs, major geopolitical conflict, and policy uncertainty—though priorities vary by region.

For example, 75% of Asia-Pacific billionaires surveyed expressed strong concern about tariffs. In the Americas, about 70% said their top worry was high inflation or major geopolitical conflict.

Amid these uncertainties, more billionaires are beginning to shift both wealth and residence on a larger scale. Among UBS billionaire clients surveyed, 36% said they have relocated at least once, and nearly one in ten (9%) are currently considering a move.

Younger billionaires are even more mobile. Among those aged 54 and under, 44% have relocated at least once, and another 15% are considering relocating in the future.

UBS also finds that many billionaire clients want their children to achieve success through personal capability rather than relying primarily on inheritance. Increasingly, entrepreneurs choose to hire professional managers or sell their companies outright instead of passing them on—making “independent success” a more essential skill than ever.

Among surveyed billionaires with children, over 80% (82%) said they hope their children will develop the skills and values needed to succeed independently, rather than simply inheriting wealth. More than two-thirds (67%) want their children to pursue their own interests and passions, while over half (55%) hope they will use wealth responsibly to create a positive impact on society and the world.