The planet's mega-moneyed are scattered far and wide, with more than 70 nations and territories across four continents all boasting at least one billionaire. That said, the richest individual's net worth varies wildly from country to country. The wealthiest residents of some countries, for example, own nearly 50 times less wealth than that of the global number one.
Read on to discover who rules the roost in the world's biggest economies based on the latest data from Forbes as of 19 November 2024, ranked from least to most wealthy.
All dollar amounts in US dollars
The only billionaire in Portugal is Maria Fernanda Amorim, the widow of Americo Amorim (the couple are pictured here). She and their three daughters inherited his fortune when he passed away in 2017.
Americo oversaw his family's cork business, Corticeira Amorim, which dates back to 1870 and has dominated the industry. He also invested in banks in several countries and held an estimated 18% stake in Portuguese oil and gas company Galp Energia, currently chaired by his eldest daughter, Paula Amorim.
The richest person in Belgium is old-money sugar baron Éric Wittouck, whose grandfather Paul and great-uncle Frantz (pictured) established the Tiense Suicker company at the end of the 19th century.
Publicity-shy Wittouck has massively expanded his fortune with the help of US private equity firm Invus, which has made several lucrative investments on his behalf in companies such as WW International (formerly known as Weight Watchers) and Blue Buffalo Pet Products.
South Korea's wealthiest individual leads its biggest and most successful conglomerate.
Despite serving time in prison for bribery and embezzlement, Samsung Electronics vice chairman Jay Y Lee remains at the top of the globally renowned business and has held on to his substantial $8.9 billion (£7bn) fortune in the process.
Since the deaths of his father and brother in 2022, Shapoor Mistry has controlled the 157-year-old Indian engineering and construction company Shapoorji Pallonji Group.
Of Ireland's 11 billionaires, Mistry comes out on top with a $9.3 billion (£7.4bn) fortune.
While New Zealand is fast becoming a magnet for super-rich doomsday preppers, the country is home to just four people with a net worth in excess of 10 figures: Lord of the Rings director Peter Jackson, investor Richard Chandler, tech whizz Charles Gibbon, and packaging tycoon Graeme Hart.
With a fortune of $10 billion (£7.9bn), Auckland resident Hart is the wealthiest of the trio by a long stretch. He's not afraid to splash the cash either, and in 2023 he reportedly took delivery of a swish new superyacht featuring a helipad and incredible glass stairways.
The richest of South Africa's six billionaires is Johann Rupert. He's the chairman of Swiss luxury goods firm Compagnie Financiere Richemont, a holding company that counts Cartier and Montblanc among its portfolio.
Rupert – who's loudly opposed fracking plans in the Karoo region of South Africa – also chairs and owns 7% of the investment fund Remgro, a company originally founded by his father Anton as Rembrandt Group Ltd in the 1940s.
Robert Kuok (pictured centre) is the richest person in Malaysia with a $11.8 billion (£9.3bn) fortune.
His wealth is diversified across several industries. As owner of the Kuok Group he has stakes in interests ranging from commodities to real estate and hotels, specifically the chain of Shangri-La Hotels and Resorts. The successful and long-established business magnate celebrated his 101st birthday in October 2024.
Charlene de Carvalho-Heineken is the wealthiest person in the Netherlands by far and one of the richest women in the world.
The heiress's staggering wealth is derived from her 23% stake in Heineken. The Amsterdam-based multinational brewing company was launched by her great-grandfather, Gerard Adriaan Heineken, in 1864. Her husband Michel de Carvalho, sons Charles and Alexander de Carvalho and daughter Louisa Brassey all occupy seats on Heineken boards.
Colombia's wealthiest and youngest billionaire is 43-year-old businessman David Velez, who has a $13.3 billion (£10.5bn) fortune. Born in Medellín, Velez's family relocated to Costa Rica when he was nine to escape the chaos wrought by warring drug cartels in the country.
Starting his career in investment banking, Velez was inspired to launch the digital banking company Nubank after noticing that 80% of the market was controlled by five Brazilian banks, which charged high fees for basic financial products.
He co-founded Nubank in 2013 and the organisation went public on the New York Stock Exchange in December 2021. Currently, it has 90 million customers across Brazil, Mexico, and Colombia. Velez serves as CEO.
Li Xiting is the wealthiest man in Singapore with a $14 billion (£11.1bn) fortune.
Though he holds Singaporean citizenship, he lives in Shenzen, China where he founded his medical device company, Shenzhen Mindray Bio-Medical Electronics, in 1991.
Former H&M chairman Stefan Persson is the wealthiest person in Sweden thanks to his 36% stake in the fast-fashion business.
H&M was founded by Persson's father Erling in 1947. When Stefan Persson stepped down from his role as chairman in 2020 it was his son, Karl-Johan, who succeeded him. Several other members of the Persson family are among Sweden's billionaires.
Manuel Villar's self-made fortune of $17.7 billion (£14bn) puts him ahead of the 13 other billionaires in the Philippines, and his wealth comes from a diverse range of companies. These include property development firm Vista Land & Lifescapes, run by his son Manuel Paolo, which includes a portfolio of 10 shopping malls and two office towers.
Villar's wife and other children hold public office, and he too has been actively involved in politics, even running for president in 2010. In recent years he's been busy launching his own TV network.
The UK boasts some world-famous billionaires, including Sir Richard Branson and Sir James Dyson.
However, the richest citizen currently is Michael Platt, cofounder and CEO of BlueCrest Capital Management, one of the world's largest hedge fund firms. Platt recently edged out Sir James Ratcliffe to take the top spot among the UK's billionaires and has largely flown under the radar. He maintains a low profile with one newspaper report claiming that many of his employees don't even know who he is.
Mining magnate Gina Rinehart is the richest person in Australia with a fortune of $30 billion (£23.7bn). Rinehart has transformed her late father's floundering iron ore company, Hancock Prospecting, into a flourishing business, raking in billions in the process.
In recent years she's made big investments in the rare earth minerals sector. Rinehart is also Australia's leading landowner and one of its premier cattle producers.
With 55 billionaires – more than any other Latin American country – Brazil is awash with ultra-rich residents. Eduardo Saverin is the wealthiest, with a net worth of $30.4 billion (£24bn).
Saverin cofounded Meta Platforms, formerly Facebook, with his Harvard classmate Mark Zuckerberg in 2004. He's now a venture capitalist, but the bulk of his wealth comes from his small but extremely lucrative stake in Meta.
Swiss shipping magnate Rafaela Aponte and her Italian businessman husband Gianluigi (pictured) each have a net worth of $33.3 billion (£26.3bn).
This makes them the richest of Switzerland's many billionaires by some distance. The couple entered the shipping industry in 1970 when they purchased their first ship with a loan of $200,000. Today, they each own a 50% stake in MSC, the world's largest shipping line.
Klaus-Michael Kuehne is the wealthiest person in Germany, with a juicy $37.5 billion (£29.7bn) fortune. He joined the company founded by his grandfather, Kuehne + Nagel International AG, in 1958, eventually becoming CEO in 1966.
The 87-year-old owns approximately 30% of the shipping and logistics company Hapag-Lloyd and, in recent years, has become German airline Lufthansa's single biggest investor.
At 32, Austria's youngest billionaire is also the country's wealthiest.
Mark Mateschitz inherited his father's 49% stake in energy drink company Red Bull when CEO Dietrich Mateschitz passed away in 2022.
Who knew Nutella and Kinder Eggs could make someone so deliciously rich?
The executive chairman of his family's eponymous confectionery company, Giovanni Ferrero is the wealthiest of Italy's billionaires by some stretch. In 2023, the business recorded sales of $18 billion (£14.2bn). Ferrero's net worth currently stands at a very sweet $42.1 billion (£33.3bn).
The richest person in Japan is Tadashi Yanai, the founder of Fast Retailing, the parent company of global fast-fashion chain Uniqlo.
Bolstering the business further, Fast Retailing has snapped up a raft of top brands over the years, ranging from Helmut Lang and Theory to J Brand and Comptoir des Cotonniers.
Prajogo Pangestu is the richest person in Indonesia by some margin. The son of a rubber trader, Pangestu started out in the timber industry in the 1970s.
As the founder of the Barito Pacific Group, a diversified conglomerate with interests in various sectors including petrochemicals, forestry, property, and agriculture, he boasts a healthy $47.8 billion (£37.8bn) fortune.
Zhong Shanshan is currently the richest person in China. Before starting his own business he had jobs as a construction worker and drinks sales agent.
Nicknamed the "lone wolf" due to his tendency to stay out of the spotlight, Shanshan is the founder and chairman of the bottled water company Nongfu Spring. He also controls Beijing Wantai Biological Pharmacy, which produces COVID-19 vaccines and test kits.
With 66 billionaire citizens, Canada has far fewer ultra-high-net-worth individuals than its North American neighbour.
The wealthiest Canadian is media mogul David Thomson who, together with his family, controls conglomerate Thomson Reuters and partly owns The Globe and Mail newspaper. He also counts a stake in Bell Canada, the country's largest telecom firm, within his portfolio.
Carlos Slim Helú reigned supreme as the world's richest person between 2010 and 2013 but still holds the title of richest person in Mexico.
The telecoms tycoon controls Latin America's largest wireless company, América Móvil, and also has hefty stakes in construction, mining, consumer goods, and real estate firms.
With an eye-watering fortune of $97.9 billion (£77.4bn), Mukesh Ambani is the richest man in India by a long shot. Ambani runs Reliance Industries, a business founded by his yarn trader father, Dhirubhai Ambani, in 1966. Today, the business has interests in petrochemicals, oil and gas, telecoms, and retail.
The company is expanding into green energy, with plans to invest $80 billion (£63bn) in renewables over the next 10-15 years. Mukesh Ambani's three children, Akash, Isha, and Anant, joined the board of Reliance in 2023. Known for their lavish spending, their extravagant family weddings regularly make headlines around the world.
Amancio Ortega, the founder and former chairman of Inditex, holds the title of Spain's richest person.
Inditex is the parent company of the Zara fashion chain, as well as brands including Massimo Dutti, Bershka, and Pull&Bear. According to Forbes, Ortega earns around $400 million (£316m) in dividends each year, which he invests in real estate around the world.
Bernard Arnault helms LVMH, which he formed in 1987. With a staggering $155.7 billion (£123bn), he's not only the richest person in France but also regularly occupies the world's wealthiest person top spot. But not this month.
One of Europe's most valuable businesses, the luxury goods juggernaut boasts scores of distinguished high-end brands, from Louis Vuitton and Christian Dior to Moët & Chandon and Tiffany & Co.
The latter brand was acquired by LVMH in 2021 in a deal worth a sparkling $15.8 billion (£12.5bn).
When it comes to billionaires, America leads the way with a staggering 813, according to Forbes. The richest of the lot is Tesla, SpaceX, and X supremo Elon Musk, who, at the time of writing, is worth $313.9 billion (£185.5bn).
Earlier this year, Musk was the third-richest person on the planet, beaten by Jeff Bezos in the US and blocked from the top spot by France's Bernard Arnault. However, his fortune has ballooned by around $70 billion (£55.4bn) in the past month, and he's firmly back on top. Given the fluctuating fortunes of the world's wealthiest people, there's every chance it could all change again soon.
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