The surging global popularity of TikTok has seen the co-founder of its parent company, ByteDance, become China's richest person, BBC reports.

According to a rich list produced by the Hurun Research Institute, Zhang Yiming is now worth $49.3bn (£38bn) - 43% more than in 2023. It is reported that the 41-year-old stepped down from his role in charge of the company in 2021, but is understood to own around 20% of the firm.

While both companies insist they are independent of the Chinese government, the US intends to ban TikTok in January 2025 unless ByteDance sells it.

Despite facing that intense pressure in the US, ByteDance's global profit increased by 60% last year, driving up Zhang Yiming's personal fortune.

"Zhang Yiming is the 18th new Number One we have had in China in just 26 years," said head of Hurun Rupert Hoogewerf.

"The US, by comparison, has only four Number Ones: Bill Gates, Warren Buffett, Jeff Bezos and Elon Musk.

"This gives an indication of some of the dynamism in the Chinese economy."