Last year there were 1,125 billionaires on Forbes’ list of the world’s billionaires. This year the list is down to 793 people. Forbes says it is the first time since 2003 that the world has had a net loss in the number of billionaires.
The richest in the world is Bill Gates. He lost $18 billion over the last 12 months, but still has a total net worth of $40 billion.
There are 24 Indians on the list; as many as 29 Indians have lost their billionaire status entirely.
Last year Anil Ambani was the biggest gainer and ranked at #6. This year, with an estimated wealth of $10.1 billion, he is down to #34, and is also the biggest loser: he lost $32 billion over the last 12 months.
His brother and Reliance Industries chairman Mukesh Ambani (#7) is the richest Indian with a total wealth of $ 19.5 billion. Last year his fortune was estimated at $43bn.
Steel baron Lakshmi Mittal at #8 lost $25.7 billion during the past year.
Click here for the complete list.
The Forbes list of billionaires is just out and the Indian billionaire club is thriving. Although China has the most number of new billionaires on The List (28), the wealth amassed by Indian billionaires is more than 3.5 times that of those in China.
India, incidentally, has 19 newbies on The List — with at least one (Sameer Gehlaut of India Bulls) below the age of 40.
And, finally, India has retained its position as Asia’s biggest source of billionaires — 53 of them with a combined wealth of $340.9 billion. India’s Fab Four — Lakshmi Mittal, Mukesh Ambani, Anil Ambani and K.P. Singh — retain their place in The List’s T20 (top 20).
Check out the complete list, edited by Luisa Kroll at Forbes:
After 13 years on top, Bill Gates is no longer the richest man in the world. That honor now belongs to his friend and sometimes bridge partner Warren Buffett.
Riding the surging price of Berkshire Hathaway stock, Buffett has seen his fortune swell to an estimated $62 billion, up $10 billion from a year ago.
Gates is now worth $58 billion and is ranked third richest in the world. He is up $2 billion from a year ago, but would have been as rich–or richer–than Buffett, had Microsoft not made an unsolicited bid for Yahoo! at the beginning of February. Mexican telecom mogul Carlos Slim Helú now ranks as the world’s second richest person with a net worth of $60 billion.
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