Twenty-six Chinese tycoons have cashed in assets over 800 million yuan ($125 million) from dividends or stocks, a record high, according to the annual report from The Hurun Research Institute cited in the Want China Times.

At the top of this year’s list is Chen WenPei, who runs investment firm SCAS Group. He has 4.5 billion yuan ($705 million) in liquid assets.

At second place is Zu Linyao, chief of Huabao International Holdings. Nicknamed the “Queen of cashout”, she has 3.5 billion yuan in assets from cashout. Since her company listed in Hong Kong in 2004, she has cashed out approximately 8.5 billion yuan altogether.

In third place on the list was Kao Xuefong, head of Jingchengtai Chemical, with 3 billion yuan.

Most of the entrepreneurs on the list cashed their stocks prior to the 2008 financial crisis, as stock prices have spiralled downwards since. On average, they began to cash stocks three years after their companies listed in the stock market. Bawang Group chairman Chen Qiyuan and chief executive Wan Yuhua did so after just 6 months. Cashout yuan billionaires have usually invested their earnings in private equities, said the report. 

Of those on the list, 23 per cent are female, much higher than the ratio seen on the Hurun Rich List, which measures wealthy Chinese by total assets including property and retail. The youngest cashout billionaire is 38-year-old Jiang Nanchun who started his own business and cashed 1 billion yuan last year.

Hurun Report founder Ruper Hoogewerf said entrepreneurs become yuan billionaires only after cashing their stocks.