Wang Jianllin (L) and Jack Ma (R) (File photo)

Wang Jianlin of Wanda overtakes Jack Ma of Alibaba to become the wealthiest person in the mainland after his wealth surged 52 per cent to 220 billion yuan (USD 34.4 billion), according to Hurun Rich List 2015 released on Thursday.

According to the list, Chinese mainland now has 596 billionaires, an increase of 242 from last year, which means China has more billionaires than the U.S. for the first time. Counting in the 119 billionaires from Hong Kong, Taiwan and Macao, Greater China now has 715 dollar billionaires. There are 537 dollar billionaires in the U.S.

"Growth in China's stock market created 242 dollar billionaires in China and helps China to surpass the U.S. in the number of dollar billionaires," said Rupert Hoogewerf or Hu Run, the publisher of the Hurun Report.

The threshold for entering the rich list this year was 2 billion yuan (USD 310 million). About 1,877 individuals made it to the list, 606 more than that of last year.

Although China's economic growth slows down, increase in the number of the rich is more than ever, said Hoogewerf. Those who own more than 10 billion yuan on the list increased from 176 in 2014 to 333, while 20 years ago there were only five.

Wang Jianlin, 61, Chairman of Wanda, storms back to snatch back top spot from Jack Ma, on the back of a 52 per cent increase in his wealth.

Last year’s No. 1 Jack Ma Yun, 51, saw his wealth drop 3 per cent to 145 billion yuan (USD 22.7 billion). Alibaba group first saw 18 of his senior executives on the list including Jack Ma and Xie Shihuang, co-founder of Alibaba.

Zong Qinghou, 70, founder, Chairman and CEO of the Hangzhou Wahaha Group and his family continues his Top 3 ranking with a net worth of 135 billion yuan (USD 21.1billion), up 8 percent year on year.