RICHER AND STRONGER: Rupert Hoogewerf (right), founder and compiler of the Hurun Rich List, and Jian Yuping (left), Associate President of Agile Property Holdings Ltd., which sponsors the list, jointly release the 2009 Hurun Rich List on October 13 in Beijing (SHI BOSEN)

The Hurun Research Institute released the 2009 Hurun Rich List, a ranking of the 1,000 richest individuals in China, on October 13 in Beijing.

Topping the list was 43-year-old Wang Chuanfu, President of the Shenzhen-based BYD Automobile Co. Ltd., who is worth $5.1 billion, followed by Zhang Yin, President of the Dongguan-based Nine Dragons Paper (Holdings) Ltd.

According to the list, the number of known U.S. dollar billionaires in China has grown to 130, up from 101 last year and none in 2003. "You can double the real number of billionaires in China to 260," said Rupert Hoogewerf, founder and compiler of the Hurun Rich List. "There are still a large number of billionaires off the radar screens, managing to build up substantial wealth away from the public spotlight."

According to Hoogewerf, the annual list is a serious attempt to identify China's top entrepreneurs and to measure their wealth holdings. The list researchers travel the length and breadth of the country cross-checking information with entrepreneurs, industry experts, journalists, bankers, and regulators, as well as information from previous years.

"China's super rich seem to have put the credit crunch behind them," Hoogewerf said. "Rebounding capital markets and property prices have pushed the collective net worth of The Hurun 1000, our annual tally of China's richest people, up $130 billion in the past 12 months from $439 billion to $571 billion."

Most of China's wealth creation has been driven by its massive urbanization, led by property and related industries, he said.