BYD founder Wang tops '09 Forbes China rich list

Shanghai, November 5 (Gasgoo.com) Wang Chuanfu, chairman of electric car and battery maker BYD, has become mainland China's richest person, according to an annual rich list released by Forbes today, Xinhua News reported.

Wang leapt from last year's 23rd position to top the Forbes China Rich List after his fortune increased to 39.6 billion yuan ($5.8 billion), exceeding the second richest, agricultural feed and heavy industry tycoon Liu Yongxing's $5.5 billion, Forbes said.

The total assets of China's 40 richest people doubled from $52 billion to a record $106 billion over the past year, Forbes said. All the top 40 are billionaires, compared with just 24 billionaires last year.

BYD, or Build Your Dreams, soared after a unit of Warren Buffett's Berkshire Hathaway agreed to buy a 10-% stake last year in the Chinese manufacturer of car batteries and electric cars for $230 million. BYD's shares have risen 469% this year.

BYD's F3 has also become China's bestselling car in the first nine months, helped partly by government's policy incentives, including aggressive cuts in sales tax for small cars.

Electric car tycoon Wang jumped 102 places to top this year's Hurun Rich List of China's wealthiest, which was released at the end of September.