The water bottler magnate has a net worth of $91.5 billion, higher than Buffett’s $88.9 billion, according to the Bloomberg Billionaire Index. The bulk of Zhong’s wealth, or $74 billion, is derived from his 84% stake in Nongfu Spring, now valued at 88 times forward earnings after a 180% return since its public offering in Hong Kong last September.How much can Zhong get if he wishes to monetize some of that stake now? It turns out, Nongfu stock is not good collateral for margin loans. Its loan-to-value ratio, according to Hong Kong-based Philip Securities Group, is only 50%. By comparison, Hong Kong tycoon Li Ka-shing, who is now well below Zhong in the rankings, could get 80% margin loans for his shares in CK Hutchison Holdings Ltd. Even Ma’s wealth is a lot more stable: Alibaba stocks can be margin-financed at 80%, too.Banks decide the size of margin loans based on liquidity, or how fast they can sell down the shares. A stock’s loan-to-value ratio is … [Read more...] about View: China’s billionaires are not as rich as they look
Warren buffett
Own a slice of Berkshire, Google for $1
You may have been dreaming of owning prized stocks like Berkshire Hathaway, Amazon and Alphabet (Google), but a steep price has been a deterrent. Right?For instance, one share of Warren Buffett’s Berkshire Hathaway, which is trading at $350,620 apiece, will cost you nearly Rs 2.6 crore at an exchange rate of Rs 73 to a dollar. You will need to invest about Rs 2.4 lakh to become Jeff Bezos’s co-shareholder in retail giant Amazon, trading at $3,292 per share. And to buy a single stock of Google’s parent Alphabet ($1,893), you’ll need almost Rs 1.4 lakh.Now, you can have fractional ownership — having less than one full share — of these high-price companies for just a dollar. The concept of fractional ownership has been prevalent in other high-value assets like racing horses, yachts and aircraft. Some US brokerages have recently started offering such ownership for shares due to tech-enabled innovation.Globalise, a London-based investment … [Read more...] about Own a slice of Berkshire, Google for $1
Elon Musk debates how to give away world’s biggest fortune
Musk, 49, is a philanthropy neophyte compared with those he just leapfrogged on the Bloomberg Billionaires Index of the world’s 500 wealthiest people.Longtime No. 1 Bill Gates and his friend Warren Buffett, co-founders of the Giving Pledge initiative that urges the ultra-wealthy to donate at least half their fortunes, have each given away tens of billions in cash and stock. Even Jeff Bezos, who has been criticized for being slow to establish himself as a philanthropist, has stepped up his game. He pledged to give $10 billion to issues related to climate change last year and handed out $791 million to 16 environmental groups in November.The event comprises important topics facing both satellite industry and end-users, and brings together a diverse group of thought leaders to share their knowledge.Despite signing the Giving Pledge, Musk has done relatively little publicly in the way of charity. He’s donated more than $257 million to the Musk Foundation -- equivalent to about … [Read more...] about Elon Musk debates how to give away world’s biggest fortune
Elon Musk now richest person in world
CNBC found Musk started 2020 worth about $27 billion, and was barely in the top 50 richest people. Tesla's rocketing share price — which has increased more than ninefold over the past year — along with his generous pay package have added more than $150 billion to his net worth. … [Read more...] about Elon Musk now richest person in world
Oxfam urges radical economic rejig for post-COVID world
“Rigged economies are funnelling wealth to a rich elite who are riding out the pandemic in luxury, while those on the frontline of the pandemic — shop assistants, healthcare workers, and market vendors — are struggling to pay the bills and put food on the table,” said Gabriela Bucher, executive director of Oxfam International. … [Read more...] about Oxfam urges radical economic rejig for post-COVID world