With an estimated net worth of $1.1 billion (£877 million), Taylor Swift has joined the ranks of the world’s wealthiest persons, debuting on the Forbes World’s Billionaires List. Along with her, there’s Sam Altman, who made $1 billion (£800 million) as the founder of the AI chatbot ChatGPT. However, with an incredible $233 billion (£185 billion) wealth, the French mogul Bernard Arnault and his family are at the top of the list. He is the driving force behind the luxury goods behemoth LVMH.
With 2,781 persons reaching the billionaire status in 2024, Forbes reported a record-breaking year compared to prior years. This is an increase of 141 million plus 26 million from 2021. A record-breaking $14.2 trillion (£11.3 trillion) was amassed by these wealthy elites, indicating an unparalleled degree of opulence.
Taylor Swift’s membership in the billionaire’s club is a testament to her phenomenal accomplishment as a music business megastar. Her successes, such as four Grammys for Album of the Year and last year’s best-selling vinyl LP “1989 (Taylor’s Version),” demonstrate her influence on popular culture and her commercial acumen. Even outside of the realm of music, Swift has an impact because to her frequent appearances at American football games, where she cheers on her boyfriend Travis Kelce and helps drive up NFL viewership numbers.
Six of the top ten wealthiest people in the world got their start in the tech industry, and most of them are American. With a net worth of $195 billion (£155 billion), Elon Musk—the visionary behind Tesla and X (previously Twitter)—takes second place, just behind Bernard Arnault. The third place goes to Amazon’s founder, Jeff Bezos.
Basketball great Magic Johnson and television producer Dick Wolf are among the new billionaires added to the list in 2024. The incredible growth of centi-billionaires, or those with fortunes above $100 billion, is highlighted by Forbes in their reflection on the astonishing wealth accumulation among the world’s elite.
Their collective fortune has skyrocketed over the previous decade, thriving despite the economic uncertainty endured by many. With only 0.5% of the world’s billionaires owning 14% of all billionaire wealth, the concentration of billionaire wealth within a select few highlights the increasing wealth inequality internationally.
The United States may have more billionaires than any other country, but India and China are right behind. Nevertheless, the number of billionaires has decreased due to economic difficulties. This is especially true in mainland China, where real estate market slumps and weak consumer spending have affected wealth.
Several significant persons, such as Egyptian mogul Mohamed Al-Fayed, former Italian Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi, former Chilean President Sebastián Piñera, and famous musician Jimmy Buffett, have passed away, while new billionaires have also risen, according to the list.
Comment Template