Aponte vs Zeng

MSC Mediterranean Shipping Company and CATL.

The differences

Forbes puts Gianluigi Aponte about $1B ahead of Robin Zeng.Forbes figures from 9 Oct 2026 and 9 Oct 2026.
Both started the company their money comes from.
Gianluigi Aponte is about 28 years older than Robin Zeng.
Gianluigi Aponte is from Switzerland; Robin Zeng is from Hong Kong.

Put someone else on either side

Aponte

Zeng

Net worth, Forbes: $46.8BForbes, 9 Oct 2026; $45.8BForbes, 9 Oct 2026
Net worth, Bloomberg: $52.7BBloomberg, date not stated; $54.6BBloomberg, 16 Jan 2026
Forbes rank: No. 40Real-Time list, 9 Oct 2026; No. 44Real-Time list, 9 Oct 2026
Billionaire since: Not stated; 2019Forbes listed him with $5.9 billion among the new billionaires on its 2019 China's 400 Richest list; his first global-list year isn't in the cited sources

How it started: Founded itFounded MSC in 1970 in Brussels with a single ship, after working as a ferry captain and a banker; Forbes says he and his wife Rafaela entered shipping together; Founded itFounded CATL in December 2011, spun off from Amperex Technology
Main source: MSC Mediterranean Shipping CompanyBloomberg: 'Aponte's fortune is derived from closely held Mediterranean Shipping'; CATL stockBloomberg: most of his fortune is his CATL stake
Companies: MSC Mediterranean Shipping CompanyMSC Mediterranean Shipping Company: Founder and executive chairman of the group; CATLCATL: Founder, chairman, executive director and general manager
Biggest stake: MSC Mediterranean Shipping CompanyStake not stated; CATL22.45% owned

Born: 1940Sorrento, Italy; 1968Ningde, Fujian, China
Country: SwitzerlandLives in Geneva, Switzerland; Hong KongLives in Ningde, China
Education: Not statedItalian Maritime Academy (the nautical institute in his home town); Graduate degreePhD in condensed matter physics, Institute of Physics, Chinese Academy of Sciences
Parents: From a family of sailors going back more than 300 years; his father opened a hotel in Somalia and died when he was five. He began as a ferry captain in the family business; Not stated

Giving Pledge: Not a signer; Not a signer
Foundation: MSC FoundationFounded by the Aponte family in 2018 as the MSC Group's philanthropic arm; Not stated
Lifetime giving: Not stated; Not stated

Role now: Runs the companyFounder and executive chairman of the MSC Group; Runs the companyChairman, executive director and general manager of CATL
Successor: His son Diego Aponte (group president) and daughter Alexa Aponte (group CFO) took over ownership of MSC in the last quarter of 2025; Not stated
Public office: None found; None found
Legal record: None found; None found