In this undated file photo, Lujiazui, the financial center in Shanghai, forms a backdrop to the Bund area. (WANG GANG / FOR CHINA DAILY)

BEIJING - The number of self-made billionaires aged 40 or under in the world stood at 59 by Jan 16, among which 18 are Chinese entrepreneurs, according to a list compiled by Hurun Research Institute.

The most successful entrepreneurs under 40 made their first billion US dollars within an average of six years, according to the institute

China is second only to the United States, which is home to 23 such billionaires on the list.

Zhang Yiming, the founder of TikTok's parent company ByteDance, ranks second with a wealth of 250 billion yuan (about $36.3 billion), after Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg.

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The three co-founders of miHoYo, the Shanghai-based developer of the globally acclaimed game Genshin Impact, are among the 14 newcomers this year, the research institute said.

The most successful entrepreneurs under 40 made their first billion US dollars within an average of six years, according to the institute.