The richest people in the world have been named as part of Forbes‘ annual billionaires list and it’s good news for LVMH’s Bernard Arnault (USD$233 billion) who continues to stretch his lead as the richest man in the world over Elon Musk (USD$195 billion) who lands in second place. Unsurprisingly, the rich are getting richer and Jeff Bezos, Warren Buffet, and Bill Gates still land in the top 10 richest people.
Pop-culture icons and former athletes like Magic Johnson (USD$1.2 billion), Taylor Swift (USD$1.1 billiob), Rihanna (USD$1.4 billion), Jay-Z (USD$2.5 billion), and Kim Kardashian (USD$1.7 billion) are still raking in the cash, but they’re joined by a tonne of new faces. We welcome 141 new names to the list (the most ever) which now totals more billionaires than ever at 2,781. Most notably, SHEIN founders Maggie Gu and Ren Xiaoqing who are each worth around USD$4.2 billion.
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1. Bernard Arnault – USD$233 Billion
- Net worth: USD$233 billion
- Source of wealth: Luxury goods
- Born: 5 March 1949, Roubaix, France
- Education: École Polytechnique (1969–1971), Lycée Faidherbe
French luxury goods tycoon Bernard Arnault has had a monster few years. In 2021, after LVMH noted a USD$417 billion market value thanks to a surge in share price, Arnault’s 47 per cent stake became the most important in the world. Today, the market cap sits around USD$410 billion, which has helped Arnault reclaim his title as the richest person in the world with a net worth of USD$233 billion.
He’s also extended his lead in the billionaire rankings after Elon Musk’s Tesla share price and market cap dropped by nearly 33% in the last 6 months.
LVMH, the luxury business responsible for Louis Vuitton, Bulgari, TAG Heuer, Hennessy, Sephora and Christian Dior reported a whopping 30 per cent surge during the COVID-affected years and that continued in early 2024 after a slow December period, bouncing back 16.52% in the last 6 months.
2. Elon Musk – USD$195 Billion
- Net worth: USD$195 billion
- Source of wealth: Tesla, SpaceX
- Born: 28 June 1971, Pretoria, South Africa
Like Bernard Arnault, Tesla and SpaceX chief Elon Musk‘s net worth is mostly dictated by the share of his company and the two are often trading blows for the number 1 spot on the billionaires list. As it currently stands, Elon Musk is the second richest person in the world with a net worth of USD$195 billion.
His monumental surge in net worth came off the back of a sharp increase in value for Tesla shares, of which he owns 23%. While 2024 has been a rough year for the company, with share prices dropping nearly 33% YTD (-81.79), the market cap of USD$522.13 billion is still helping to swell Musk’s bottom line.
Additionally, Musk’s work in the field of space travel has also increased his net worth, with the billionaire’s SpaceX company now valued at around USD$175 billion, following several successful funding rounds and physical launches. That being said, Musk’s contentious takeover of Twitter has seen the billionaire’s impact fall in recent times. He currently owns an estimated 74% of the social media platform, which has been dwindling in users and popularity since he came on board.
Musk purchased Twitter back in October 2022 for an estimated USD$44 billion. He has since renamed the business ‘X’.
3. Jeff Bezos – USD$194 Billion
- Net worth: USD$194 billion
- Source of wealth: Amazon
- Born: 12 January 1964, Albuquerque, New Mexico, United States
- Education: Princeton University (1982–1986), Miami Palmetto Senior High School (1982), River Oaks Elementary School
Amazon boss Jeff Bezos has become a familiar face at the top of Forbes’ wealthiest people in the world list, however, since stepping down from the lead role, he’s fallen behind the top two. A cost-earning slump back in 2021 saw Amazon shares fall by seven per cent in one day, resulting in a loss of USD$14 billion in 24 hours for Bezos. However, the share price has surged so far in 2024, climbing more than 20%.
In recent times, Bezos has certainly slowed down on the money-making front. The entrepreneur split from his wife MacKenzie in 2019 after 25 years of marriage and transferred a quarter of his then 16% stake to her. Since then, Bezos has donated more than USD$400 million worth of stock to non-profits and has even outlined that he plans to give away the majority of his wealth in his lifetime.
4. Mark Zuckerberg – USD$177 Billion
- Net worth: USD$177 billion
- Source of wealth: Facebook
- Born: 14 May 1984, White Plains, New York, United States
When he’s not rolling around on the mat training BJJ or building an off-grid lair, Facebook and Meta founder Mark Zuckerberg continues to make bulk cash. The tech entrepreneur owns around 13% of the company’s total stock, which has seen serious growth in the last 12 months, climbing by 133% to nearly USD$500 a share.
That being said, it hasn’t been the easiest road for Zuckerberg in recent years. When the tech entrepreneur announced that he was changing Facebook’s name to Meta in November 2021, the public didn’t love the idea and the share price plummeted below USD$100.
Similarly, a string of antitrust cases brought by the US federal government did serious damage to the business’s credibility, despite all cases being dismissed. Nevertheless, Zuckerberg is still managing to rake in the big dollars, with his net worth now at an estimated USD$177 billion.
5. Larry Ellison – USD$141 Billion
- Net worth: USD$141 billion
- Source of wealth: Software
- Born: 17 August 1944, The Bronx, New York, United States
- Education: The University of Chicago (1964–1966)
American business magnate Larry Ellison continued to sit pretty on the Forbes rich list, however, it wasn’t all smooth sailing for the Oracle co-founder and superyacht fanatic. The company’s share price took a nose dive in the back end of 2022 but has since rallied beyond USD$130 a share, helping Ellison climb back up the billionaire rankings as he reportedly owns 35% of the shares.
Outside of Oracle, Ellison’s investments have been fairly sound. The tech pioneer has major shares in Tesla. That safety net has given him the ability to buy up businesses that align with his existing enterprises at varying levels of success. In 2021, Ellison snapped up electronic health records business Cerner for a reported USD$28.3 billion, capitalising on the post-COVID surge in medical transparency.
6. Warren Buffett – USD$133 Billion
- Net worth: USD$133 billion
- Source of wealth: Berkshire Hathaway
- Born: 30 August 1930, Omaha, Nebraska, United States
One of the world’s savviest investors, Warren Buffett is a perennial entrant in the top 10 richest people in the world. The revered investor famous for running Berkshire Hathaway has continued his near-mythical run at the top of the finance world. Between 2020 and 2022, the stock expert, better known as the Oracle of Omaha, raised his net worth from USD$67.5 billion to USD$118 billion, marking one of the most successful runs in billionaire history.
7. Bill Gates – USD$128 Billion
- Net worth: USD$128 billion
- Source of wealth: Microsoft
- Born: 28 October 1955, Seattle, Washington, United States
Former world’s richest man Bill Gates also had a solid year. The Microsoft co-founder still ranks in the top 10 with a net worth of USD$128 billion, thanks to the strong share performance in Microsoft, Canadian National Railway and tractor maker Deere & Company.
According to Forbes, when Gates stepped down from the Microsoft board in 2020, he owned around 1.3% of the software company’s shares. As a result, much of Gates’ net worth is still tied up in the company he founded with Paul Allen in 1975, despite not being actively involved in the day-to-day running for several years. More recently, Gates and wife Melinda Gates announced they were ending their marriage after 27 years, leading to one of the most expensive divorce settlements in history.
8. Steve Ballmer – USD$121 Billion
- Net worth: USD$121 billion
- Source of wealth: Microsoft, Los Angeles Clippers
- Born: 24 March 1956, Detroit, Michigan, United States
- Education: Harvard University (1977)
Most people may know Steve Ballmer for his outrageous courtside antics, but the Los Angeles Clippers owner has increased his wealth every year with key investments. The former Microsoft CEO led the technology business through some of its darkest years, helming the organisation from 2000 to 2014, and his story is one of commitment. Ballmer remarkably joined the company in 1980 as its 30th employee, standing side by side with the founders as they built an empire.
Longevity has proved his great skill, with Ballmer steering the ship through the first dot-com crash and helping pave the way for the remarkably new wave of technology we see today. In terms of wealth, Ballmer made the majority of his money through an internal investment strategy that saw his shares in Microsoft continue to rise in value after his retirement in 2014. For reference, Microsoft shares have risen 251.52% in the last 5 years (+$301.55).
Furthermore, picking up the Los Angeles Clippers NBA team has helped to establish his worth as a major player in the sports industry, swelling his net worth even more. It’s unlikely that we’ll see Steve Ballmer rise too much further up the list of the world’s richest people in the future, however, if the Clippers were to snatch a maiden Championship, it could tip him in the top five.
9. Mukesh Ambani – USD$116 Billion
- Net worth: USD$116 billion
- Source of wealth: Chairman and Managing Director, Reliance Industries
- Born: 19 April 1957, Aden, Yemen
- Education: Hill Grange High School, Institute of Chemical Technology (ICT), St. Xavier’s College
Unlike most of the entrepreneurs on this list, Mukesh Ambani’s net worth is fairly brick-and-mortar. His Fortune 500 company, Reliance Industries, is the largest private sector corporation in India and has interests in petrochemicals, oil and gas, telecom, retail and financial services. Data shows the company’s telecommunications business Jio has more than 470 million subscribers and that number will continue to rise after Ambani sold one-third of the company during the pandemic to Facebook and Google amongst other investors.
While he mostly stays out of the limelight, Ambani’s daughter Isha married billionaire Ajay Piramal’s son in December 2018 and brought Beyoncé and Hillary Clinton to India for the wedding alongside another 10,000 guests.
10. Larry Page – USD$114 Billion
- Net worth: USD$114 billion
- Source of wealth: Google
- Born: 26 March 1973, Lansing, Michigan, United States
- Education: East Lansing High School (1987–1991)
Google co-founder Larry Page was able to take his wealth to a new level this year. The American entrepreneur is now worth an estimated USD$114 billion, thanks to the continued demand for working from home and diversified products over the past few years.
Importantly, Page stepped down as the CEO of Alphabet in 2019, but has continued to play an active role in the business’ direction, serving as a board member and controlling shareholder. Like Elon Musk and Jeff Bezos before him.
Who Dropped Out of the Top 10?
Of course, not every billionaire can make the top 10 richest people in the world list. These are the people who’ve dropped out of the top rankings in the last year, according to Forbes.
Sergey Brin – USD$110 Billion
- Net worth: USD$110 billion
- Source of wealth: Google
- Born: 21 August 1973, Moscow, Russia
- Education: Stanford University (1993–1995)
Similar to his Google co-founder, Sergey Brin’s net worth has swelled massively over the past few years. While that was enough to get the tech guru into the top 10 last year, his USD$110 billion net worth now lands outside the highest earners. Like many of the rich listers, Brin stepped down from his position in 2019, however, remains an active board member and controlling shareholder so expect to see his net worth change as the share market moves north (or south).
Explaining the Business of Wealth
Amazingly, despite the challenges of the past few years, the number of billionaires on Forbes‘ list of the world’s wealthiest is growing. In the last year, the figure ‘exploded’ to 2,781, up 141 from the year before. At that time, the combined wealth of all the billionaires on the list amounted to a whopping USD$14.2 trillion. The incredible figure came off the back of surging stock prices along with a series of public offerings.
Of the new entrants to make the billionaire mark, the wealthiest is Andrea Pignataro (USD$27.5 billion), who is the founder and CEO of ION Group, a London-based financial data and technology firm. His first major investment with ION was in 2021 when the company acquired Cedacri, Italy’s main provider of outsourced IT services to banks. Most recently, his company’s corporate structure grew scrutiny from The Bank of Italy due to the amount of sensitive financial data the group manages following its acquisitions, according to sources at Reuters. The company is known for its aggressive financing in its acquisition strategy.
On the lifestyle side, Raising Cane’s founder Todd Graves (USD$9.1 billion) made the list alongside Manoj Punjabi (USD$1.9 billion) who co-founded and is the CEO of MD Pictures (the largest film production house in Indonesia), Takaya Awata (USD$1.2 billion) president and CEO of Toridoll Holdings (Japan’s largest operator of noodle restaurants), Magic Johnson (USD$1.2 billion), Christian Louboutin (USD$1.2 billion), and Taylor Swift (USD$1.1 billion).
Your FAQs Answered
LVMH’s Bernard Arnault is the richest person in the world with an estimated net worth of USD$233 billion.
While Elon Musk’s wealth is heavily dependent on stock price, the Tesla and X boss’ most recent net worth estimate is USD$195 billion.
According to the latest reports from Forbes, L’Oréal heiress Francoise Bettencourt Meyers has reclaimed her title of the world’s richest woman with a net worth figure of USD$99.5 billion.
