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Capitalism’s global conquest
continues as entrepreneurs
around the globe mint
fortunes in everything from
cryptocurrencies to telecom to bridal
dresses Forbes has pinned down a
record 2,208 billionaires from 72
countries and territories including the
first ever from Hungary and
Zimbabwe This elite group is worth
$9.1 trillion up 18 since last year.
Their average net worth is a record
$4.1 billion Americans lead the way
with a record 585 billionaires,
followed by mainland China with 373.
Centi-billionaire Jeff Bezos secures the
Iist’s top spot for the first time,
becoming the only person to appear
in the Forbes ranks with a 12-figure
fortune Bezos’s fortune leapt more than 39 billion the list’s biggest one—
year gain ever He moves ahead of Bill
Gates who is now number 2 It is the
biggest gap between no 1 and 2 since
2001 Bernard Arnault with a fortune
of 72 billion reclaims the title of
richest European for the first time
since 2012 There are 259 newcomers
including the first ever cryptocurrency
billionaires two Canadians whose toy
company is behind Hatchimals and
PAW Patrol two Americans who
founded online retailer Wayfair and a
35-year-old heiress who runs In-N-
Out Burger Even in such a strong
year 121 dropped out due to falling
fortunes or political headwinds,
including all 10 Saudi Arabians.
These are The List:
1. Jeff Bezos
$112 Billion
- Amazon‘s chief Jeff Bezos
is the first person to top
$100 billion as number
one on the Forbes list of
the World‘s Billionaires - He owns 16 of e—
commerce colossus
Amazon which he
founded in a garage in
Seattle in 1994. - Bezos attended Princeton
and worked at a hedge
fund before quitting to sell
books online. - His other passion is space
travel His aerospace
company Blue Origin is
developing a reusable
rocket that Bezos says will
carry passengers. - Bezos purchased The
Washington Post in 2013
for 250 million.
2. Bill Gates
$90 Billion
- With his wife Melinda Bill
Gates chairs the Bill Melinda Gates Foundation,
the world‘s largest private
charitable foundation. - The foundation works to
save lives and imfrove
global health an is working with Rotary International to eliminate
polio. - Gates has sold or given
away much of his stake in
Microsoft he owns just
over 1 of shares and invested in a mix of
stocks and other assets. - He remains a board
member of Microsoft the
software firm he founded
with Paul Allen in 1975. - In late 2016 Gates
announced the launch of a
$1 billion Breakthrough
Energy investment fund
with about 20 other People.
3. Warren Buffett
$84 Billion
- Known as the Oracle of Omaha Warren Buffett is one of the most successful
investors of all time. - He runs Berkshire Hathaway which owns more than 60 companies,
including insurer Geico battery maker Duracell and restaurant chain Dairy
Queen. - The son ofa U.S.
congressman he first
bought stock at age 11 and
first filed taxes at age 13. - He has committed to giving more than 99 of his fortune to charity So
far he has given nearly 32
billion. - With friend Bill Gates he
launched The Giving
Pledge in 2010 asking
billionaires to donate half
their wealth to charitable
causes.
4. Bernard Arnault & Family
$72 Billion
- One of the world’s ultimate taste—makers, Bernard Arnault oversees an empire of 70 brands including Louis Vuitton and Sephora.
- Record results at LVMH and a megadeal to buy out nearly all of Christian Dior helped boost Arnault‘s fortune by 30.5 billion in one year.
- Arts patron is the Visionary behind the 135 million Frank Gehry-designed Foundation Louis Vuitton museum in Paris‘ Bois de Boulogne opened in 2014.
5. Mark Zuckerberg
$71 Billion
- Mark Zuckerberg, Facebook‘s CEO has seen his net worth soar as the social network‘s stock price has skyrocketed
- A Harvard dropout he founded Facebook in 2004 at the age of 19.
- Zuckerberg started Facebook at Harvard for students to match names
with faces in class. - He took Facebook public in May 2012 and still owns nearly 17 of the stock.
- Zuckerberg and his wife, Priscilla Chan have pledged to give away 99% of their Facebook stake over their lifetimes.
6. Amancio Ortega
$70 Billion
- Amancio Ortega is one of the richest men in Europe and the wealthiest retailer in the world.
- A pioneer in fast fashion,
he cofounded InditeX, known for its Zara fashior chain with his ex—wife 4
Rosalia Mera d 2013 in 1975. - He owns about 60 of Madrid-listed InditeX, which has 8 brands, including Massimo Dutti and Pull Bear and 7,500
stores around the world. - Ortega typically earns more than 400 million in dividends a year.
- He has invested his dividends primarily into real estate in Madrid, Barcelona London, Chicago Miami and New York.
7. Carlos Smith Helu & Family
$67.1
- Mexico‘s richest man, Carlos Slim Helu and his family control America Movil Latin America‘s biggest mobile telecom firm.
- With foreign telecom partners Slim bought a stake in Telmex Mexico‘s
only phone company in 1990 Telmex is now part of America Movil. - He also owns stakes in Mexican construction, consumer goods mining
and real estate companies and 17 of The New York Times. - His son—in-law Fernando Romero designed the Soumaya Museum in
Mexico City home to Slim’s extensive eclectic art collection.
8. Charles Koch
$60 Billion
- Charles Koch has been chairman and CEO of Koch Industries America‘s
second largest private company since 1967. - The conglomerate has $100 billion in revenues from businesses includinf pipelines chemicals Dixie cups Brawny paper towels and Stainmaster carpets.
- His father Fred Koch started the business in 1940 and improved a
method of refining heavy
oil into gasoline. - The Kansas native owns a 42 stake in the firm as does his brother David;
they bought their two other brothers shares in 1983. - Koch has funded a number of think tanks including the libertarian Cato
Institute the Heritage foundation and American Enterprise Institute.
9. David Koch
$60 Billion
- David Koch shares majority control of Koch Industries U.S’s second largest private firm with his brother Charles.
- The Kansas native lives in New York City and oversees Koch’s chemical technology group
- Koch Industries which has revenues of 100 billion, operates pipelines, produces fertilizer and makes Dixie cups and Quilted Northern toilet
paper. - A well-known philanthropist David is a
donor to New York‘s Lincoln Center and Memorial-Sloan Kettering
Cancer Center. - David Koch ran as the Libertarian Party‘s vice presidential candidate in
1980 on a ticket with Ed Clark; they won 1% of the vote.
10. Larry Ellison
$58.5 Billion
- Larry Ellison cofounded software firm Oracle in 1977 to tap into the
growing need for customer relationship management databases. - He gave up the Oracle CEO role in 2014 but still serve as chairman of the board and chief Technology officer.
- As part of Oracle‘s push into cloud computing it acquired cloud-software
firm Netsuite for 9.3 billion in 2016. - Oracle moved into hardware with its 2010 acquisition of Sun Microsystems for 7.4 billion.
- In 2016 Ellison pledged to give 200 million to the University of Southern
California for a cancer treatment center.
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