Zhang Yong, Alibaba Group's chairman and CEO. [Photo/Sipa]

Zhang Yong, chairman and chief executive officer of China's internet heavyweight Alibaba Group, has taken the first spot of the top 50 CEOs published by Forbes China. Tencent's Ma Huateng and Ping An's Ma Mingzhe rounded out the top three.

According to Forbes, the Best CEOs List is based on a company's stock price performance, market value, revenue, net profit, profit growth, return on assets and return on equity for domestically listed, as well as Hong Kong and US-traded shares from 2017 to 2020. CEOs that made the cut also are required to hold the position for three consecutive years after stepping in.

The average age of 50 CEOs is 54 years old, and the market value of companies they manage hits 365.4 billion yuan ($52.54 billion) on average. Four female leaders were nominated, including Chen Lin from Wuliangye at sixth, Dong Mingzhu from Gree Electronics at 11th place, Wang Laichun of Luxshare Precision at 17th and Fan Hongwei of Hengli Group at 35th.

It is worth noting that 10 companies that top 50 CEOs manage are in Shenzhen, surpassing those in Beijing, Shanghai and Hangzhou. Tech and internet giant Tencent, insurance leader Ping An, plus Mindray, the biggest breathing machine manufacturer and Luxshare Precision, smartphone producer Apple's supplier, have experienced great performance since 2017.