Alibaba Founder Jack Ma is Richest Man in China Following World's Biggest IPO

Jack Ma, the founder and executive chairman of e-commerce company Alibaba, is the richest man in China following his company's gargantuan £15bn IPO last week, according to the country's annual rich list report.

The Hurun Report estimated the net worth of Ma, 50, to be around £15.2bn; nearly six times what it was last year.

Ma owns 6% of Alibaba, valued at £103bn, and has 46% stake in the company's electronic-payment affiliate Alipay.

He is one of five newcomers to China's top 10 richest individuals, many of whom are involved in the country's burgeoning tech sector.

Internet entrepreneurs now make up half of the country's 10 richest, including Pony Ma from Tencent at number five and Robin Li, the CEO of search-engine Baidu, at number six.

"This IT boom has really taken off in the last year, when Chinese players seem to be bringing bigger ideas to market," said Hurun founder Rupert Hoogewerf.

There have been 15 Chinese internet IPOs so far in 2014, including Alibaba, collectively raising £17.7bn. Last year there were only four that together raised £55.5m.

"International investors appreciate the transformational effects that e-commerce is having in China," JD.com spokesman Josh Gartner told WSJ.

Many of China's other richest citizens are property magnates, including Wang Jianlin who, valued at £14.75bn, comes in at number two.

Despite his new title, Ma doesn't even make the top 10 richest people in the world. His worth is dwarfed by the £51.5bn of Mexican businessman Carlos Slim, or the £40.7bn of Microsoft's Bill Gates.

In fact, to join the world's richest 10, Ma would have to double his wealth, with Liliane Bettencourt of L'Oreal valued at £21.7bn.