It’s a well-known fact that it’s quite impossible to become a billionaire overnight, and anyone that claims to have done so is probably a liar.
Many of the wealthiest billionaires in the world spend a lot of time devising investment plans and strategies to help them build their fortune, and you’d be surprised at just how many started from nothing.
In this article, we’re going to look at the ten richest billionaires in the world, how much they are worth, and how they went about making their fortunes.
Rob Walton
At the time of writing this article, Rob Walton has a net worth of $53.2 billion. He is the eldest son of the founder of Walmart, Sam Walton, and took over as the chairman of the company after his father died in 1992.
Walton retired as Walmart’s chairman in June of 2015 and was replaced by Greg Penner, his son-in-law. However, Walton is still a member of the Walmart Board, and he and Sam Walton’s other heirs own around half of Walmart’s stock.
As you may have guessed by now, there Rob Walton didn’t really have to do much to make his fortune. He was lucky enough to be an heir to the founder of one of the largest, most profitable companies in the world.
Alice Walton
Alice Walton, as you might already know, is related to Rob Walton, and is Sam Walton’s only daughter. She currently has a net worth of $53.4 billion, $400 million more than her brother.
She places most of her focus on curating art rather than working for Walmart full-time, like her brothers Rob and Jim. She opened the Crystal Bridges Museum of American Art in 2011, in Bentonville, Arkansas, her hometown.
The museum features the work of Norman Rockwell, Andy Warhol, and Mark Rothko. Once again, there was not much that Alice had to do to make her fortune – her father was already quite wealthy.
Jim Walton
Jim probably needs no introduction. He is the brother of Alice and Rob Walton and works for Walmart with his brother Rob.
He is Walmart founder Sam Walton’s youngest son and gave away $1.2 billion in Walmart stock in June of 2019, but still remains the richest Walton, with a net worth of $53.6 billion. He was a member of Walmart’s board for over ten years, before giving the seat up to his son Steuart in 2016.
Mark Zuckerberg
You may know Mark as the creator of Facebook, which is one of the most popular social media platforms on the planet. Zuckerberg has a net worth of $87.9 billion.
He founded Facebook at Harvard when he was 19 years old, in 2004, for students to match names with photos of their classmates. He made Facebook public in May of 2012, and currently still owns around 15% of its stocks.
Amancio Ortega
Amancio Ortega is currently one of the richest men in all of Europe and is the wealthiest clothing retailer on the planet. He is a leader in the world of fast fashion and is a co-founder of Inditex.
He owns around 60% of Madrid-listed Inditex, which includes 8 brands, like Pull & Bear and Massimo Dutti. Currently, Ortega has a net worth of $55.1 billion.
Larry Ellison
Larry Ellison is a co-founder of the Oracle software firm founded in 1977 as a solution to the growing demand for customer relationship databases. He relinquished his role as CEO in 2014 but is still chairman of the board, and chief officer of technology.
Oracle grew through the steady acquisitions of software companies, and Ellison currently has a net worth of $68.9 billion.
Warren Buffett
Warren Buffett is one of the most successful investors in history, according to Forbes. He is currently worth $67.5 billion, and also manages Berkshire Hathaway, which is the owner of more than 60 companies.
Bernard Arnault
Both Bernard and his family, in March, were worth $76 billion. He is the CEO of LVMH, which includes the brands Sephora and Louis Vuitton.
The company acquired Tiffany & Co. last year for $16.3 billion, which might be the largest luxury brand acquisition ever, according to Forbes.
Bill Gates
Another billionaire that needs no introduction, Gates was worth $108.6 billion before he died. He and his wife Melinda chair the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, which is the largest charitable foundation in the world.
Gates was the founder of Microsoft, which is the company that makes the operating system that you are probably using to view this article.
Jeff Bezos
Finally, we reach the wealthiest billionaire in the world. Jeff Bezos, the founder of Amazon, is currently worth $113 billion.
Despite giving a quarter of his Amazon stake to his ex-wife MacKenzie, he is the richest man in the world. Quite a feat!
Summary
Billionaires are some of the most influential people in the world, and many of them worked hard to achieve their billionaire status. Who knows – maybe you’ll become a billionaire one day too.
