(Yicai Global) Nov. 16 -- Xu Jiayin, chair of real estate giant China Evergrande [HK:3333] took the top spot in Forbes magazine's China Rich List for this year with a net worth of USD42.6 (CNY281.35 billion).

Pony Ma, chief executive at internet firm Tencent Holdings Ltd. [HK:0700] came in second with USD39.1 billion (CNY258.18 million), while Alibaba Group Holding Ltd. [NYSE:BABA] chair Jack Ma took third place with a net worth of USD38.7 billion (CNY255.53 million).

Evergrande shares have surged 469 percent over the past year, increasing Xu's net worth by CNY215.69 billion, representing the biggest rise in net worth among Chinese billionaires. Pony Ma's net worth rose nearly 57 percent this year.

Dalian Wanda Group Co. chairman Wang Jianlin was Asia's richest man with a net worth of USD31.3 billion, says Forbes' 2017 global billionaires list published in July. However, Wang's net assets since shrank by CNY54.28 billion to USD25.2 billion (CNY166.82 billion), causing his ranking to fall to fourth on the new list.

Wang's fall was due to Wanda's large-scale asset restructuring including asset sales and a decline in the market value of AMC Entertainment Holdings Inc. [NYSE:AMC], a US cinema chain owned by Wanda.

Wang Wei, chairman and general manager of S.F. Holding Co. [SHE:002352], came in fifth with a fortune of USD22.3 billion (CNY147.63 billion).