Within the realm of extreme wealth, a select group of individuals hold immense influence and prosperity. Their fortunes, constantly in flux, are a result of the ever-changing dynamics of net worth and financial performance. As of May 22, 2023, according to the real-time Bloomberg Billionaires Index, we present the most recent compilation of the world’s wealthiest, featuring the top 10 individuals. Alongside fascinating insights about each tycoon, it becomes evident that many of these influential figures are the visionary founders of technology behemoths, with a significant portion of their wealth still intricately tied to their pioneering companies.
While these billionaires possess remarkable affluence, they have devised ingenious strategies to navigate the intricate realm of finance. Through leveraging their wealth, they can skillfully avoid the need to sell substantial amounts of stock, thereby deferring taxes on unrealized capital gains, a tactic that also benefits their heirs. Moreover, the multi-billionaires adeptly employ an array of tax deductions to offset reported income, a method that has allowed some individuals on this prestigious list to effectively pay little to no income tax in recent years.
The World’s Billionaires is an annual ranking of people who are considered to have a net worth of $1 billion or more, by the American business magazine Forbes. The list was first published in March 1987. The total net worth of each individual on the list is estimated and is cited in United States dollars, based on their documented assets and accounting for debt and other factors. Royalty and dictators whose wealth comes from their positions are excluded from these lists. This ranking is an index of the wealthiest documented individuals, excluding any ranking of those with wealth that is not able to be completely ascertained.
In 2018, Amazon founder Jeff Bezos was ranked at the top for the first time and became the first centibillionaire included in the ranking, surpassing Microsoft founder Bill Gates, who had topped the list 18 of the previous 24 years. In 2022, after topping the list for four years, Bezos was surpassed by Elon Musk. In 2023, Musk was in turn surpassed by French businessman Bernard Arnault, after topping the list for just a year. Arnault became the first French person to top the list.
Here are the The 10 Richest People in the World
1. Bernard Arnault
Bernard Jean Étienne Arnault is a French business magnate, investor, and art collector. He is the founder, chairman, and chief executive officer of LVMH Moët Hennessy Louis Vuitton, the world’s largest luxury goods company.
- Age: 74
- Residence: Paris
- CEO and Chair: LVMH (LVMUY)
- Net Worth: $206 billion
- Christian Dior Ownership Stake: 97.5% ($161 billion total)
- Other Assets: Moelis & Company equity ($32.5 billion public asset) and $12.5 billion in cash
2. Elon Musk
Elon Reeve Musk FRS is a business magnate and investor. He is the founder, CEO and chief engineer of SpaceX; angel investor, CEO and product architect of Tesla, Inc.; owner and CEO of Twitter; founder of the Boring Company; co-founder of Neuralink and OpenAI; and president of the philanthropic Musk Foundation.
- Age: 51
- Residence: Texas
- Co-founder and CEO: Tesla
- Net Worth: $165 billion3
- Tesla Ownership Stake: 13% ($67.5 billion)
- Twitter Ownership Stake: 79% ($9.65 billion)
- Other Assets: Space Exploration Technologies ($48.9 billion private asset), The Boring Company ($3.33 billion private asset
3. Jeff Bezos
Jeffrey Preston Bezos is an American entrepreneur, media proprietor, investor, and commercial astronaut. He is the founder, executive chairman, and former president and CEO of Amazon, the world’s largest e-commerce and cloud computing company.
- Age: 59
- Residence: Washington
- Founder and Executive Chair: Amazon (AMZN)
- Net Worth: $129 billion
- Amazon Ownership Stake: 10% ($105 billion)
- Other Assets: Blue Origin ($11.2 billion private asset), The Washington Post ($250 million private asset), and $13.4 billion in cash
4. Bill Gates
William Henry Gates III is an American business magnate, investor, and philanthropist. He is best known for co-founding software giant Microsoft, along with his late childhood friend Paul Allen.
- Age: 67
- Residence: Washington
- Co-founder: Microsoft (MSFT)
- Net Worth: $125 billion
- Microsoft Ownership Stake: 1.4% ($31.6 billion)
- Other Assets: $60 billion in cash and billions over multiple other companies
5. Warren Buffett
Warren Edward Buffett is an American business magnate, investor, and philanthropist. He is currently the chairman and CEO of Berkshire Hathaway.
- Age: 92
- Residence: Nebraska
- CEO: Berkshire Hathaway (BRK.A)
- Net Worth: $115 billion
- Berkshire Hathaway Ownership Stake: 14% ($114 billion)
- Other Assets: $1.2 billion in cash
6. Steve Ballmer
Steven Anthony Ballmer is an American billionaire businessman and investor who served as the chief executive officer of Microsoft from 2000 to 2014. He is the owner of the Los Angeles Clippers of the National Basketball Association.
- Age: 67
- Residence: Washington
- Owner: Los Angeles Clippers
- Net Worth: $107 billion
- Microsoft Ownership Stake: 4% ($98.1 billion total)
- Other Assets: Los Angeles Clippers ($3.73 billion private asset), Intuit Dome ($2 billion), $3.05 billion in cash
7. Larry Ellison
Lawrence Joseph Ellison is an American business magnate and investor. He is the co-founder, executive chairman, chief technology officer and former chief executive officer of the American computer technology company Oracle Corporation.
- Age: 78
- Residence: Hawaii
- Co-founder, Chair, and CTO: Oracle (ORCL)
- Net Worth: $107 billion
- Oracle Ownership Stake: 42%+ ($79.4 billion)
- Other Assets: Tesla equity ($7.4 billion public asset), $19.2 billion in cash
8. Larry Page
Lawrence Edward Page is an American business magnate, computer scientist and internet entrepreneur. He is best known for co-founding Google with Sergey Brin.
- Age: 50
- Residence: California
- Co-founder and Board Member: Alphabet (GOOG)
- Net Worth: $99.1 billion
- Alphabet Ownership Stake: 6% ($84 billion total)
- Other Assets: $15.2 billion in cash
9. Francoise Bettencourt Meyers
Françoise Bettencourt Meyers is a French businesswoman, philanthropist, writer, pianist, billionaire heiress, and the richest woman in the world, with an estimated net worth of US$87.4 billion as of March 2022, according to Forbes.
- Age: 69
- Residence: France
- Chairwoman: Tethys, which owns 33.3% of L’Oréal (LRLCY)
- Net Worth: $95 billion
- L’Oréal Ownership Stake: 33.3% ($88.5 billion total)
- Other Assets: $6.48 billion in cash
10. Sergey Brin
Sergey Mikhailovich Brin is an American business magnate who co-founded Google with Larry Page. Brin was the president of Google’s parent company, Alphabet Inc., until stepping down from the role on December 3, 2019. He and Page remain at Alphabet as co-founders, controlling shareholders and board members.
- Age: 49
- Residence: California
- Co-founder and Board Member: Alphabet (GOOG)
- Net Worth: $94.8 billion
- Alphabet Ownership Stake: 6% ($79.5 billion total)
- Other Assets: $15.3 billion in cash
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