Initial public offerings (IPOs) in 2011 helped create 558 new billionaires in China, down from the 2010 number of over 800, according to statistics by Investor Journal.

BYD Co. President Wang Chuanfu and Vice Chairman Lv Xiangyang took the first and second spots among these new billionaires in terms of market value of shares held. Wang and Lv each hold 570 million and 239 million A-shares of BYD, which is respectively worth 13 billion yuan (US$2.06 billion) and 5.45 billion yuan (US$863.04 million) by the end of 2011.

Zhang Changhong, chairman and general manager of Shanghai Great Wisdom Co., Ltd., came in third with 4.2 billion yuan (US$665.11 million) of market value held.

China's business press carried the story above on Monday.