Zhang Yiming becomes Asia’s second-richest person as ByteDance valuation rises

Zhang Yiming, the ByteDance co-founder behind TikTok, is now Asia’s second-richest person with an estimated fortune of $92.8 billion, according to the Bloomberg Billionaires Index. He moved ahead of Mukesh Ambani after a rise in ByteDance’s valuation and stronger expectations around its artificial-intelligence business.

Zhang Yiming’s fortune rose with ByteDance’s valuation

Zhang’s wealth has increased more than sevenfold since Bloomberg began tracking it in March 2019, when he was worth $13 billion. The latest increase followed updated investor valuations and a reduction in the risk discount applied to ByteDance after parts of TikTok’s US operation were transferred to American investors.

That discount fell from 25% to 10% on June 2, reflecting the completed US sale and post-spinoff valuations from investors including BlackRock, Fidelity Investments, T. Rowe Price, HSG and General Atlantic. Bloomberg’s analysis lifted Zhang’s fortune by more than $24 billion.

The ranking leaves Gautam Adani as Asia’s richest person with $117.4 billion. Ambani is third with $86.9 billion, according to the same index.

TikTok and Doubao are driving the wider ByteDance story

TikTok remains ByteDance’s best-known global product, while its Doubao chatbot has passed 300 million monthly users in China, according to Bloomberg-sourced reporting. ByteDance is preparing to charge subscriptions for Doubao, a notable shift in a market where users have traditionally been reluctant to pay for online services.

ByteDance is also reportedly considering as much as $70 billion in artificial-intelligence spending in 2026, partly funded by roughly $50 billion in profit generated during 2025. Zhang stepped down as ByteDance chief executive in 2021, but remains closely associated with the company’s long-term direction.

Bloomberg-sourced coverage quoted Capital Securities analyst Amy Lin saying the valuation jump reflected ByteDance’s fundamentals and the success of apps including Doubao. DZT Research analyst Ke Yan said removing the US risk “unlocked the re-rating” of the remaining ByteDance business.

TikTok’s US operations were transferred to a consortium led by Oracle, Silver Lake and Abu Dhabi-based investment company MGX. That gives the story a UAE corporate connection, although there is no separate UAE consumer change attached to the wealth ranking.

For more on the company’s AI push, see tbreak’s report on ByteDance’s AI spending and its coverage of TikTok’s UAE economic contribution.

Sources: Economic Times, citing Bloomberg, and News.Az.