Zhang Yiming, the founder of ByteDance, a company that was the target of the US administration last year and some apps of which were blacklisted in India, is now among the world’s eight richest persons. ByteDance is famous for its short-video app TikTok and news aggregator app Toutiao. Zhang Yiming founded ByteDance in 2012.

The shares of ByteDance in the private market are at a valuation of more than $250 billion, according to a Bloomberg report. And, Zhang Yiming, who owns nearly one-fourth of ByteDance, could be worth more than $60 billion, the Bloomberg report said. With this worth, as per Bloomberg Billionaire’s Index, Zhang is now placed alongside Pony Ma of Tencent Holdings, Zhong Shanshan of the bottled-water king, and members of the Walton and Koch families in the US. 

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The revenues of ByteDance doubled in 2020 after the company expanded its core advertising business into e-commerce, online gaming, and other areas. According to the Bloomberg report, the company is also looking for options for the initial public offering of some of its businesses. 

The Bloomberg report said, quoting people familiar with the matter that ByteDance reached a valuation of $180 billion during its last fundraiser. 

According to the South China Morning Post, the value of ByteDance is now approaching $400 billion, after which the fortune of Zhang would further be increased.