Li Xiaodong, co-founder, chairman and CEO of Singapore's Sea Ltd., the largest Internet company in Southeast Asia, has become the new richest man in the city-state, worth $19.8 billion.

Donghai's American depositary receipts (ADR) have risen 67 per cent so far this year, pushing Li Xiaodong's worth soar, surpassing paint magnate Goh Cheng Liang, who now has a net worth of $17.7 billion.

This is another example of tech millionaires rising in the wealth rankings of Asian countries. Earlier this year, Kim Fan-soo, founder of South Korean communications giant Kakao Corp., overtook Samsung's de facto boss, Lee Jae-yong, to become South Korea's richest man.

Born in Tianjin, Li Xiaodong graduated from the Engineering Department of Shanghai Jiaotong University and founded Donghai Group in 2009. The company first worked as a game agent and was known as "Southeast Asian Little Tencent". After more than a decade of development, it has become the largest Internet company in Southeast Asia, with three major business segments, such as e-commerce platform Shopee, video game platform Garena and SeaMoney.

The other two founders of Donghai Group are Ye Gang and David Chen, who is now the company's chief operating officer with a fortune of $10.8 billion, while David Chen is the chief product officer with a fortune of $3.6 billion.