Fan Hongwei Net Worth

Fan Hongwei has an estimated net worth of $5.4 billion, according to Forbes Real-Time Billionaires, Fan Hongwei profile (figures as of October 20, 2026). That is up from $4.3 billion in 2019.

Fan Hongwei is a Chinese entrepreneur who chairs Hengli Petrochemical, the main listed arm of Hengli Group. Born in Jiangsu Province in February 1967, she studied at Nanjing Normal University and began her working life as an accountant. Forbes counts her as a self-made billionaire. She built the business alongside her husband, Chen Jianhua, who chairs the parent company and is also a billionaire.

The couple first ran a textile and silk trading business. In 1994 they borrowed 3 million RMB to buy a struggling textile factory in Wujiang, Suzhou, and Fan took charge as general manager. That factory had just 27 employees. Through restructuring and steady expansion, the couple grew it into China's largest fiber producer and moved into petrochemicals, creating the company now known as Hengli Group.

How Fan Hongwei built her fortune

Fan's wealth rests mainly on her stake in Hengli Petrochemical, of which she owns 45%. The company refines petroleum to make polyester, produces chemical fibers and has interests in real estate. Most of its products go to the clothing industry, but it also makes chips and filaments for packaging, electronics and pharmaceuticals. Factories in Nantong, Suqian and Suzhou handle production.

Hengli Petrochemical joined the Shanghai Stock Exchange in 2016 through a backdoor listing, which gave the family a publicly traded stock. By 2019, Hengli Group brought in more than 500 billion RMB in revenue. The family business also reaches into shipbuilding and travel. Her son Chen Hanlun runs Guangdong Songfa, which merged with the group's shipbuilding unit in 2025, and her daughter Chen Yiting once led its tourism arm.

A Forbes estimate that swings with the market

Fan's Forbes estimate has moved sharply because it is tied to a listed petrochemical stock. Forbes valued her at $4.3 billion in 2019 and $6 billion in 2020. The number then leapt to $18.2 billion in 2021 and held there in 2022. After that, the figure fell steeply to $4.6 billion in 2023 and $3.8 billion in 2024 as the stock lost ground.

Her fortune has climbed back since. Forbes estimated her at $4.6 billion in 2025 and $7.5 billion on its 2026 World's Billionaires List. By October 20, 2026, Forbes' real-time billionaires tracker showed her at $5.4 billion. Those ups and downs reflect how chemical and fiber makers are exposed to oil prices and demand from textile buyers, which can quickly change investor views of the company.