Site Overlay

THE WORLD’S BILLIONAIRES 2008

– Edited By Sakin Shrestha, 6-March 2008

Warren Buffett estimated net worth $62 Billion, the famed U.S. investor who heads Berkshire Hathaway Inc (BRKa.N), replaced his friend and Microsoft Corp (MSFT.O) founder Bill Gates as the richest man in the world, Forbes magazine said on Wednesday (5-March-08).

Mexican telecoms tycoon Carlos Slim came in second with an estimated worth of $60 billion, pushing Gates to third place after 13 years of holding the No. 1 spot.

The list of billionaires has almost doubled in the past four years, Forbes said. There were 469 U.S. billionaires, worth a combined $1.6 trillion, while the 656 billionaires who live outside the United States are worth $2.8 trillion.

Russia came in second place as home to 87 billionaires and Moscow is now the world’s billionaire center, the magazine said. The Russian capital is now home to more billionaires than New York City.

India, China and Turkey also saw large gains in numbers of billionaires.

The world’s youngest billionaire is 23-year-old Mark Zuckerberg, founder of social networking Web site Facebook. The magazine estimated his worth at $1.5 billion and said he is the youngest self-made billionaire to ever appear in the Forbes billionaire rankings.

List of Top 20 Billionaires in the World by Forbes Magazine
1. Warren Buffett; US Citizen, est. net worth $62 Billion.
2. Carlos Slim Helu; Mexico citizen, est. net worth $60 Billion.
3. Bill Gates (William Gates III); US Citizen, est. net worth $58 Billion.
4. Lakshmi Mittal; Indian Citizen, est. net worth $45 Billion.
5. Mukesh Ambani; Indian Citizen, est. net worth $43 Billion.
6. Anil Ambani; Indian Citizen, est. net worth $42 Billion.
7. Ingvar Kamprad; Sweden Citizen, est. net worth $31 Billion.
8. KP Singh; Indian Citizen, est. net worth $30 Billion.
9. Oleg Deripaska; Russian Citizen, est. net worth $28 Billion.
10. Karl Albrecht; Germany Citizen, est. net worth $27 Billion.
11. Li Ka-shing; Hong Kong Citizen, est. net worth $26.5 Billion.
12. Sheldon Adelson; US Citizen, est. net worth $26 Billion.
13. Bernard Arnault; French Citizen, est. net worth $25.5 Billion.
14. Lawrence Ellison; US Citizen, est. net worth $25 Billion.
15. Roman Abramovich; Russian Citizen, est. net worth $23.5 Billion.
16. Theo Albrecht; Germany Citizen, est. net worth $23 Billion.
17. Liliane Bettencourt; French Citizen, est. net worth $22.9Billion.
18. Alexei Mordashov; Russian Citizen, est. net worth $21.2 Billion.
19. Prince Alwaleed; Saudi Arabia Citizen, est. net worth $21 Billion.
20.Mikhail Fridman, Russian Citizen, est. net worth $20.8 Billion.

Source: Forbes Magazine Annual World’s Billionaires List 2008

CategoriesBusiness NewsTags
Published By:

Author: sakinshrestha

Hello. My name is Sakin Shrestha, and I am a technology entrepreneur from Nepal. I am passionate about helping this sector grow, for many reasons. The technology sector creates jobs for many young Nepalis who would otherwise migrate to foreign countries. It lets Nepali professionals develop skills for a fast-changing global workplace, and compete at a high level with anyone, anywhere in the world. If it grows, it will provide a viable career option for many young Nepalis, and help us reap the benefits of a global economy.