The richest people in the US. "New American Millionaires" - who are they? Larry Page

When it comes to American millionaires, people usually think of Bill Gates, sports stars or show business. But these celebrities are rare exceptions. There are far more millionaires in the US than famous people. In 1996, out of 100 million American families, approximately 3.5 million owned more than $1 million in wealth. According to experts, by 2005 this figure will reach 5.6 million. On average, their wealth is about 3.7 million dollars per capita of a millionaire population. Those who have more than 10 million dollars, only 6%.

The typical American millionaire differs little in terms of his income from the middle class. On average, he earns 247 thousand dollars a year. Of course, there are those who earn a million, but they are less than 5% of the sample.

The first rule of any millionaire: work for yourself, love yourself (sneeze at everyone) - and success awaits you in life. In America, only 20% of total population. And among this twenty, two-thirds are millionaires. Most millionaires consider themselves entrepreneurs. Their business is usually very boring - something like manufacturing welding equipment, repairing roads, or a network of car parks.

The rest are highly qualified private practitioners such as doctors, lawyers, auditors and lawyers. They work a lot, 7-8 hours a day, without a smoke break on national holidays.

At first glance, they get a little - well, can an income of 247 thousand dollars be considered a millionaire? You can, if you have an economical wife who knows how to budget up to one cent and annually saves almost 15% family income. A wife may or may not work, because half of the millionaire's wives stay at home, while the other half works, most often as teachers. Most millionaires (97%) are homeowners, meaning they live in their own homes. They have not the first freshness domestic cars, modest clothes, because they prefer to invest a fifth of their income in their own business and the same amount in securities. Do not bypass the millionaires and Pension Fund, guaranteeing a well-fed old age. So by the age of 57 (the average age of an American millionaire), you can accumulate a fortune of 1.6 million ( average) and more. Want to try? You have a trump card for this: you are from Russia.

It is not high income that distinguishes a mere mortal millionaire, but low expenses. All millionaires live far below their means. They spend roughly 7% of their money a year. They are extremely frugal and successfully invest their earnings. Most millionaires' wives are even more stingy than they are. They methodically plan family budget and don't spend it on silly things like jewelry or charity. Ordinary Americans are ready to give up to 2% of their own profits to charity. Millionaires donate much less to charity than other rich people. On average, high-tech business sharks are willing to give up 6% of their net income in the name of charity. Of the wealthy, techies with incomes between $300,000 and $3 million a year are the most generous in this regard, donating up to 8% of their net income. It turned out that the leaders of the companies new economy» more tight-fisted in charity than businessmen in other industries. Their tight-fistedness is due either to their origins - most dot-com moguls come from the lower or middle class - or to the volatility of hi-tech stocks in the market. As you know, the leaders of the "new economy" keep up to 60% of their savings in shares of high-tech companies. In their own words, hi-tech millionaires think about their children and the financial security and stability of the family. So, about 70% of respondents admitted that they save money for reasons of financial security, 62% just want to live comfortably, and 56% are going to spend their income on their own children, providing them with a kind of springboard for life. Traditional economy millionaires are more balanced and up to date than most hi-tech tycoons, getting rich too quickly in a few years by the age of 30.

The working week of a millionaire is 45-55 hours. The hardest working, happiest in family life and the most greedy in America - the rich, earning on the production of computers, software as well as in the field of telecommunications. As it turned out, only 15% of techies are going to quit at retirement age, 29% are going to work part-time, and 37% of those surveyed do not want to retire at all, while 40% of the wealthy in the traditional economy do not want to remain in retirement when they reach retirement age. your workplace.

Moderation and accuracy are another component of the success of American millionaires. Millionaires always know to the last penny (or rather, cent) what is happening with their money - that's why these "goons" have so much money. They are sure to save money for a rainy day. Most millionaires have never spent more than $400 on a suit, more than $140 on shoes, or more than $250 on a watch. They drive cars costing no more than 25 thousand, they prefer the Ford 150, the most popular car in the United States. Who then buys expensive clothes and drives expensive cars? Most often these are middle managers, lawyers, doctors, employees of large corporations with an average annual income of 50 to 200 thousand dollars. They could be millionaires, but they never will be, precisely because they buy $2,000 suits, $600 boots, and $5,000 watches. American millionaires live much more modestly than the new Russians - in houses with an average cost of 320 thousand "green".

Millionaires in the United States become gradually. The average age of an American millionaire is 57 years old. He is married all his life to one woman and has been living in the same house for 20 years (not in the most fashionable area). He has three children. His wife is most often a housewife or a teacher.

Eighty percent of American millionaires became rich in the first generation. They didn't inherit more than $10,000, and often their parents didn't have a cent to their name.

Millionaires are generally fairly well educated, with only one in five not graduating from college. But academic degrees are quite rare. However, American researchers note that they have not found any relationship between IQ, GPA and economic success. Why did yesterday's "triples" today turn out to be richer than those who are clearly more gifted than them? The secret is quite simple: not possessing brilliant natural abilities, future millionaires choose their business according to their strength. What they lack in analytical skills, they make up for in creativity and practical insight. Focusing on their chosen goal, they give themselves completely to achieving it, taking calculated risks and working for three. One notable example is Donald Sonner, head of Tennessee-based Southern Bloomer Manufacturing. Using recycled rags, the 64-year-old entrepreneur produces underwear for prison inmates, as well as rags for cleaning weapons. It would seem that God knows what. However, this business made Sonner a millionaire at the age of 24. But he did not graduate from universities and studied in high school for only a year.

But millionaires believe that education is vital for their children and grandchildren. This is one of the few items of expenditure that they do not skimp on.

In principle, millionaires are not inclined to provide their children with everything they need. On the contrary, they are trying to ensure that their sons gain financial independence. As for daughters, here the heart of steel millionaires can tremble - dowries and expensive gifts for daughters also make up a significant part of their expenses.

According to the same statistics, more than half of American millionaires never received a single dollar in inheritance, the same number went to college at their own expense. Only 20% received 10 percent or more of their wealth as a gift or inheritance, but managed to increase it. So out of 4,047 American millionaires, 84% are self-made, that is, as they say, they are "nouveaux riches who have reached the millionaire fortune without taking advantage of the inheritance received."

Parents cannot boast of a prestigious education - less than 17% of current millionaires or their wives attended private schools in childhood - therefore they realize their dreams in offspring: every second millionaire considers it his duty to send his child to a private school. In general, the rich spend a lot of money on the education of offspring. And, alas, this dooms him to financial ruin - judging by the same statistics. A learned child later enters the market, and most often as a hired worker, even a highly paid one. A lawyer, manager of a large office or a prestigious doctor needs an appropriate apartment, a car. He cannot, like dad, walk in shabby jeans, he must dress expensively. As a result, if dad could abandon his job and use the available money to support his family for 10-12 or even 15 years no worse than usual, then the son with his level of consumption will go bankrupt in 3 years. The American conclusion suggests itself: learning is evil.

The crisis of children in the USA is a serious problem. Already after 1-2 generations, the entrepreneurial spirit of immigrants from another country is fading away, as they become Americans - citizens of a high-consumption society. It becomes not very interesting for them to work themselves, but they want to live well. Who will feed them? New emigrants, who today represent a whole army - 23 million. America cannot survive without their entrepreneurial fuse, a new outlook on life, business acumen and courage. And so it is repeated from generation to generation.

Researchers who have studied American millionaires have found that people from different countries are represented in different proportions among them than among the US population as a whole. The descendants of the British, who sailed to the Americas on the Mayflower schooner, rank fourth in terms of the ratio of the number of millionaires to the total number of this demographic group. And in the first place were the former Russians.

Get ready to be shocked: in America, every 22 out of 100 families who come from Russia have millions of dollars. We even overtook the Scots, descendants of Uncle Scrooge, who are known for their exorbitant frugality (read: stinginess).

The Russian diaspora in the United States is not so large - only 1.1% of the total population. But nevertheless, it has 6.4% of American millionaires in its ranks. In former Russian hands, $1.1 trillion is concentrated - almost 5% of America's personal capital. Moreover, according to the Americans themselves, the former Russians achieved such a level of wealth not due to hoarding and savings, but due to their fantastic enterprise, which is in our blood and is transmitted at the genetic level.

1. Bill Gates

State:$86 billion

Change per year:+ $11 billion

State Source: Microsoft

Age: 61

A country: USA

The richest man in the world, Forbes versions, the fourth year in a row and 18 times over the past 23 years, was Bill Gates. Over 40 years ago, Gates and Paul Allen created the world's largest software maker, Microsoft Corporation. Gates now owns almost 3% of his home company, which is only 13% of his fortune.

Gates' other investments include investments in the Canadian National railway, American engineering company Deere & Co., recycling company Republic Services, auto dealer AutoNation. In 2016, Gates, along with a team of investors including Amazon founder Jeff Bezos, created investment fund Breakthrough Energy in the amount of $1 billion.

One of the priorities of the billionaire is the Bill and Melinda Gates charitable foundation. His the main objective- improving the health care system and overcoming hunger in poor countries.

2. Warren Buffett

State:$75.6 billion

Change per year:+ $14.8 billion

State Source: Berkshire Hathaway

Age: 86

A country: USA

In 2016, the wealthiest and most famous investor in the world became richer by almost $15 billion, which helped him return to second place in the Forbes ranking, displacing Zara owner Amancio Ortega. Berkshire Hathaway, Buffett's holding company, owns stakes in more than 60 companies, including Geico, Dairy Queen and Fruit of the Loom, among others. The billionaire invests in Wells Fargo, IBM and Coca-Cola.

Warren made his first investment at the age of 11. With the money he borrowed from his father, he bought three shares of Cities Service Preferred, then sold them for a higher price. True, shares bought for $38 and sold for $40 soared to $200 a little later. Life, according to Buffett, already then taught him the first lesson in investing - patience is rewarded.

Buffett and Bill Gates, with whom he loves to play bridge, founded the philanthropic campaign The Giving Pledge (The Oath of Giving) - the billionaires who join it promise to give at least 50% of their fortune to charity. Buffett himself is going to give 99%. He has already donated $28.5 billion.

3. Jeff Bezos

State:$72.8 billion

Change per year:+ $27.6 billion

State Source: Amazon.com

Age: 53

A country: USA

Jeff Bezos has been lucky this year like no other. The shares of the Amazon company he created grew by 67%, adding almost $ 28 billion to his fortune. The growth in the capitalization of the online retailer allowed Bezos to take third place in the rating for the first time the richest people planets. In particular, Bezos pushed out in the list Forbes richest of Mexico - Carlos Slim Elu and Zara owner Amancio Ortega.

Before starting his own business, Bezos worked at a hedge fund, from which he left in 1994 for the simple idea of selling books online. Thus, Amazon was born.

In recent years, the main passion of the billionaire is space travel. His aerospace company Blue Origin is developing reusable rockets that Bezos says will carry passengers. In November 2015, Blue Origin successfully conducted a controlled landing of a reusable BE-3 rocket. An unusual hobby of Bezos is also connected with space: together with a team of “underwater archaeologists”, he gets parts of NASA spacecraft from the seabed.

5. Mark Zuckerberg

State:$56 billion

Change per year:+ $11.4 billion

state source: Facebook

Age: 32

A country: USA

Facebook was founded by Mark Zuckerberg in 2004 when he was 19 years old. For the sake of Facebook, Zuckerberg left the prestigious Harvard, but it was the social network that made him a billionaire. Last year was especially successful for Zuckerberg, however, like the previous one: the increased prices for his company's shares brought him an additional $11.4 billion.

Zuckerberg is actively involved in the management of the social network. He acted as the initiator of transactions for the acquisition social network Instagram, the WhatsApp messenger and the developer of virtual reality helmets Oculus VR.

In 2015, Mark and his wife Priscilla Chan became parents for the first time. The happy couple pledged to donate 99% of their stake in Facebook to charity. In 2017, the couple announced that they were expecting their second child.

6. Carlos Slim Elu

State:$54.5 billion

Change per year:+ $4.5 billion

State Source: Telecom

Age: 77

A country: Mexico

Carlos Slim Helu is still the richest man in Mexico, but he dropped out of the top five richest people in the world. For the first time in twelve years.

Slim and his family control America Movil, the largest telecom operator in Latin America. In his hands are stakes in Mexican companies in development, real estate and mining sectors, and consumer goods. He also owns 17% of The New York Times.

During the US presidential election, Slim was harshly critical of Donald Trump. After meeting with him in December 2016, Slim called one of his rare press conferences calling for Mexico to unite against threats from the new US president.

7. Larry Ellison

State:$52.2 billion

Change per year:+ $8.6 billion

State Source: Oracle

Age: 72

A country: USA

The talented software developer studied at two universities, but never graduated from either of them. But at the beginning of his career, Ellison managed to work for the CIA.

In 1977, the entrepreneur founded Oracle, which made him a billionaire. In 2014, Ellison stepped down as CEO of Oracle, but retained the positions of Chairman of the Board of Directors and Director of Technology Development. A year later, Ellison announced that the company would focus on developing cloud technologies. And apparently, this idea has begun to pay off - over the past 12 months, Oracle shares have risen by 18%.

Ellison is a sailing enthusiast and one of the largest sponsors of sailing events in the United States. The businessman is actively involved in charity work. In 2016, he pledged $200 million to the University of Southern California to develop cancer drugs.

8. Charles Koch

State:$48.3 billion

Change per year:+ $8.7 billion

State Source: Koch Industries

Age: 81

A country: USA

Charles Koch and his brother David own the family holding Koch Industries. With revenues of $100 billion, the company ranks second in the list of the largest private companies in the United States. The oil refinery, from which the history of the diversified holding began, was founded in 1940 by the father of the brothers.

Since 1967, Charles Koch has been chairman of the board of directors at Koch Industries, and the intensive growth of the business is his merit. Charles and David Koch are among the most influential figures in American politics, philanthropy and business.

9. David Koch

State:$48.3 billion

Change per year:+ $8.7 billion

Source States: Koch Industries

Age: 76

A country: USA

Together with his older brother Charles Koch, David owns the family company Koch Industries, founded by their father in 1940. The diversified holding is engaged in oil refining, construction of pipelines, production of cups and paper towels, etc.

Republicans Charles and David Koch are among the party's most generous donors. The sphere of their charity is education. In mid-2014, for example, they gave a $25 million grant to a foundation that supports African-American students.

State:$47.5 billion

Change per year:+ $7.5 billion

State Source: Bloomberg L.P.

Age: 75

A country: USA

The influential businessman and former mayor of New York began his career on Wall Street in 1966. Bloomberg worked for Salomon Brothers for 15 years. After his dismissal, the future billionaire created Bloomberg LP, which provides financial information.

From 2001 to 2009, New Yorkers elected Bloomberg as their mayor. The billionaire stepped down as mayor in 2014 and returned to the leadership of his company less than a year later. Bloomberg is actively involved in charity work. In total, he donated $4 billion to various causes.

11. Bernard Arnault

State: $41.5 billion

Change per year: + $7.5 billion

State source: luxuries

Age: 68

A country: France

Bernard Arnault is president of the Louis Vuitton Moët Hennessy group of companies, which controls 70 brands including Dom Perignon, Bulgari, Louis Vuitton, Sephora and Tag Heuer, as well as about 3,900 retail stores.

In 2016, LVMH sold Donna Karan (brands Donna Karan and DKNY) and acquired Rimowa, a premium hand luggage manufacturer.

Arno has led the company since 1989. In 2016, the holding's sales grew by 5% and reached a record €37.6 billion. The shares of Christian Dior and LVMH over the past year have risen in price by 20% and 29%, respectively.

Result: Arno's fortune grew by $7.5 billion, the businessman rose from 14th to 11th place in the ranking of the most wealthy people peace. This is the highest figure for Arno since 2013.

12. Larry Page

State:$40.7 billion

Change per year:+ $5.5 billion

State Source: Google

Age: 43

A country: USA

Larry Page is the CEO of Alphabet, the parent company of Google. It was created in October 2015 to separate the search engine's core business from other lines of business.

Page founded Google in 1998 with Stanford University student Sergey Brin. In 2016, Google shares rose 18%, boosting Page's fortune by $5.5 billion.

According to media reports, Larry Page is personally funding two secret flying car startups: Zee.Aero and Kitty Hawk.

13. Sergey Brin

State:$39.8 billion

Change per year:+ $5.4 billion

State Source: Google

Age: 43

A country: USA

Brin is the president of Alphabet, the parent company of Google. Previously led the Google X division that created Google's "ill-fated glasses" (one of Google's biggest failures).

During 2016, Brin sold $760 million worth of Google shares.

The businessman founded Google in 1998 with Larry Page, whom they met at Stanford University.

Brin, being a native of the USSR, is the richest immigrant in the United States and an outspoken critic of Donald Trump's anti-immigration initiatives.

14. Lillian Betancourt

State:$39.5 billion

Change per year:+ $3.4 billion

State Source: L "Oreal

Age: 94

A country: France

Liliane Betancourt is the richest woman in the world, owns 33% of the cosmetic giant L "Oréal with her children. Over the past year, the holding's shares have risen in price by 17%, increasing her fortune by $ 3.4 billion.

L "Oréal was founded by Eugene Schuller (father of Liliane Betancourt) in 1907. In 2011, Betancourt, suffering from dementia, was placed under the care of her daughter, Francoise Meyers-Betancourt. In 2012, Jean-Victor Meyers took over as head of L "Oréal - grandson of Liliane Betancourt.

Bettencourt's relatives also initiated a lawsuit against photographer François-Marie Bagnier. He was accused of exploiting Liliane Betancourt's physical weakness as a confidant for personal gain.

In August 2016, a French appeals court ordered Bagnier to pay a $400,000 fine and return $90 million worth of assets. judgment about Banye's arrest, he was ordered to pay an additional $ 170 million. Banye denies his guilt, he appealed the decision to the Supreme Court.

15. Robson Walton

State:$34.1 billion

Change per year:+ $2.2 billion

State Source: walmart

Age: 72

A country: USA

Rob Walton is the eldest son of Walmart founder Sam Walton. He ran Walmart for 23 years after his father's death in 1992. In 2015, Rob Walton was replaced as Chairman of Walmart by his son-in-law Greg Penner.

In September 2016, Walmart acquired the Jet.com online retailer. The holding's shares have risen in price by 5% over the past year. Rob Walton still owns Walmart, and his family owns more than half of the company's shares.

16. Jim Walton

State:$34 billion

Change per year:+ $400 million

State Source: walmart

Age: 68

A country: USA

Jim Walton is the youngest son of Walmart founder Sam Walton. He rules family bank Arvest Bank, whose total assets exceed $16 billion.

The businessman served on the board of Walmart for more than a decade before making way for his son, Stewart, in June 2016. Together, Jim and Sam Walton's other heirs own more than half of Walmart's stock, which has risen more than 5% in 2016.

17. Alice Walton

State:$33.8 billion

Change per year:+ $1.5 billion

State Source: walmart

Age: 67 years old

A country: USA

Alice Walton is the only daughter of Walmart founder Sam Walton. Unlike the brothers who worked at Walmart, Alice focused on art projects.

In 2011, Alice Walton opened the Crystal Bridges Museum in her family's hometown of Bentonville, Arkansas. It features the work of authors such as Andy Warhol, Norman Rockwell and Mark Rothko. Her personal art collection is valued at hundreds of millions of dollars.

18. Wang Jianlin

State:$31.3 billion

Change per year:+ $2.6 billion

State Source: real estate, entertainment

Age: 62

A country: China

Wang Jianlin is the richest man in China. This has been the case for the last four years in a row. Jianlin made his fortune by building hotels, residential real estate and shopping malls. He owns the Dalian Wanda Group, which has made several high-profile entertainment deals over the past few years.

In particular, in January 2016, the Dalian Wanda Group acquired the American film company Legendary Entertainment for $3.5 billion (the film The Dark Knight, for example, was created there). Earlier, in 2012, Dalian Wanda Group acquired the US cinema chain AMC Entertainment for $2.6 billion. In March 2017, Jianlin's company attempted to acquire Dick Clark Productions (an American television show producer) for $1 billion, but the deal fell through.

At the same time, Jianlin is investing in the Chinese entertainment industry. In May 2016, Dalian Wanda opened Dalian Wanda-City, a $3 billion theme park complex in Nanchang, China. In total, Wang plans to open 20 more such complexes, mainly in China.

19. Li Ka-shing

State:$31.2 billion

Change per year:+ $4.1 billion

State Source: various

Age: 88

A country: Hong Kong

Li Ka-shing is the richest man in Hong Kong and owns real estate developer Cheung Kong Property. Over the past 12 months (as of mid-February), the company's shares have risen by 31%. The businessman also made good money thanks to a jump in the value of shares of the Canadian oil company Husky Energy controlled by him.

Li Ka-shing invested in the Postal Savings Bank of China last year and also announced a $5 billion acquisition of Australia's Duet Corporation, an electricity and natural gas distributor.

One of the largest investors in Asia, Li Ka-shing has invested more than $28 billion in European companies over the past five years. Li Ka-shing's interests include ports, suppliers utilities, telecommunications, real estate, retail. The billionaire employs more than 310,000 people in more than 50 countries.

20. Sheldon Adelson

State:$30.4 billion

Change per year:+ $5.2 billion

State Source: casino

Age: 83

A country: USA

Sheldon Adelson runs Las Vegas Sands the biggest player in the US casino market. The company's shares rose 23% in 12 months (as of mid-February), which was the main reason for the increase in Adelson's fortune over the past year.

Adelson is actively investing abroad. In September 2016, Las Vegas Sands opened a new themed resort in Macau, China. The project cost $2.9 billion. Previously, in April 2016, Las Vegas Sands agreed to pay a $9 million fine to the US Securities and Exchange Commission to settle allegations of violating Macau's corruption law.

Sheldon Adelson enjoys a reputation as one of the Republican "wallets" and is part of the "inner circle" of President Donald Trump. Adelson donated $5 million to Trump's election campaign, and the entrepreneur invested about $40 million more in the campaigns of Republican candidates in the congressional elections.

The son of immigrants from Lithuania and Wales, Sheldon Adelson grew up in poverty. As a child, he had to sleep on the floor in a cramped high-rise apartment in Boston. The future billionaire began to earn money by selling newspapers. Adelson opened his first outlet at the age of 12, borrowing $200 from his uncle.

1. Jeff Bezos

State:$112 billion

Change per year: + $39.2 billion

State Source: Amazon.com

Age: 54

A country: USA

Amazon founder Jeff Bezos is the richest person on the planet, in addition, he is the first and only billionaire in the world with a twelve-figure fortune - on November 27, 2017, it exceeded $ 100 billion for the first time. The shares of the company he created grew by 59% in 12 months, adding to his fortune almost $39.2 billion, also a record growth in capitalization.

Before starting his own business, Bezos worked at a hedge fund, from which he left in 1994 for the simple idea of selling books online. Thus, Amazon was born.

In recent years, the main passion of the billionaire is space travel. His aerospace company Blue Origin is developing reusable rockets that Bezos says will carry passengers. An unusual hobby of Bezos is also connected with space: together with a team of “underwater archaeologists”, he gets parts of NASA spacecraft from the seabed.

2. Bill Gates

State:$90 billion

Change per year:+$4 billion

State Source: Microsoft

Age: 62

A country: USA

The fortune of the founder of Microsoft also grew in 12 months, but not so significantly, and for the first time in the last five years, Gates lost the palm to Jeff Bezos.

More than 40 years ago, Gates, along with Paul Allen, created the world's largest software maker, Microsoft Corporation. Gates now owns almost 3% of his home company, which is only 13% of his fortune.

Gates' other investments include investments in the Canadian National Railway, the American engineering company Deere & Co., the recycling company Republic Services, and the car dealer AutoNation. In 2016, Gates and a team of investors, including Amazon founder Jeff Bezos, created the $1 billion investment fund Breakthrough Energy.

One of the priorities of the billionaire is the Bill and Melinda Gates charitable foundation. Its main goal is to improve the health system and overcome hunger in poor countries.

3. Warren Buffett

State:$84 billion

Change per year:+ $8.4 billion

State Source: Berkshire Hathaway

Age: 87

A country: USA

In 2017, the wealthiest and most famous investor in the world became richer by almost $8.4 billion, which helped him to take the third place in the Forbes ranking. Berkshire Hathaway, Buffett's holding company, whose shares rose 16% in 2017, owns stakes in more than 60 companies, including Geico, Dairy Queen and Fruit of the Loom, among others. The billionaire invests in Wells Fargo, IBM and Coca-Cola.

Buffett and Bill Gates, with whom he loves to play bridge, founded the philanthropic campaign The Giving Pledge (“Giving Pledge”) - the billionaires who join it promise to give at least 50% of their fortune to charity. Buffett himself is going to give 99%. He has already donated $28.5 billion.

In January 2018, the change in leadership at Berkshire became one of the biggest topics in the financial world - billionaire Warren Buffett named likely successors: Greg Abel, CEO of Berkshire Hathaway, and Ajit Jain, head of the insurance division, will take a place next to Charlie Munger as vice presidents of the conglomerate , estimated at $500 billion.

Buffett emphasized that this decision should not be taken as an intention to immediately leave Berkshire or evidence of any health problems. “I feel great and I love what I do,” Buffett said. “In the morning I rush to get to the office.” In the ninth decade, Buffett continues to masterfully do business - from investing in Bank of America in 2011 to developing a partnership with 3G Capital.

4. Bernard Arnault

State:$72 billion

Change per year:+ $30.5 billion

State Source: luxuries

Age: 69

A country: France

The growth in the annual revenue of the French holding allowed Arno to return to the top five richest people in the world. The world's largest luxury brand group, LVMH Moët Hennessy Louis Vuitton, posted record sales of €42.6 billion in 2017, up 13% from 2016. The holding's net profit increased by 29%.

In April 2017, Arnault and his family announced a $13 billion deal to acquire fashion house Christian Dior and add a new brand to the LVMH portfolio. This transaction crowns years of difficult mutual participation of two companies in the capital of each other. After the completion of the transaction, the LVMH company of billionaire Bernard Arnault became the sole owner of Christian Dior.

5. Mark Zuckerberg

State:$71 billion

Change per year:+ $15 billion

State Source: Facebook

Age: 32

A country: USA

Despite the fact that the founder of Facebook has faced serious pressure on the social network amid allegations of alleged Russian interference in the US presidential election, the company's shares have risen 32% over the past year, adding another $ 15 billion to Zuckerberg's fortune.

Zuckerberg is actively involved in the management of the social network. He initiated transactions to acquire the social network Instagram, the WhatsApp messenger and the developer of virtual reality helmets Oculus VR.

7. Carlos Slim Elu

State:$67.1 billion

Change per year:+ $12.6 billion

State Source: Telecom

Age: 77

A country: Mexico

Carlos Slim Helu is still the richest man in Mexico, dropping to number seven in the Forbes world rankings. Slim and his family control America Movil, the largest telecom operator in Latin America. America Movil shares jumped 39% in 2017.

In his hands are stakes in Mexican companies in the development, real estate and mining sectors, in the field of consumer goods. He also owns 17% of The New York Times.

8. Charles Koch

State:$60 billion

Change per year:+ $11.7 billion

State Source: Koch Industries

Age: 82

A country: USA

Charles Koch, along with his brother David, owns the family holding Koch Industries. With revenues of $100 billion, the company ranks second in the list of the largest private companies in the United States. The oil refinery, from which the history of the diversified holding began, was founded in 1940 by the father of the brothers.

In November 2017, Kochov Holding launched Koch Disruptive Technologies, a venture capital firm run by Chase Koch, son of Charles Koch. The fund has already invested $150 million in an Israeli medical device startup.

9. David Koch

State:$60 billion

Change per year:+ $11.7 billion

State Source: Koch Industries

Age: 77

A country: USA

In November 2017, Koch Industries, through Meredith, acquired Time, one of the world's most influential publishers, for $2.8 billion. Their investment firm, Koch Equity Development, will provide Meredith with $650 million to buy Time in exchange for a seat on Meredith's board of directors.

10. Larry Ellison

State: $58,5

Change per year:+ $6.3 billion

State Source: Oracle

Age: 73

A country: USA

The talented software developer studied at two universities, but never graduated from either of them. But at the beginning of his career, Ellison managed to work for the CIA.

State:$50 billion

Change per year:+ $2.5 billion

State Source: Bloomberg L.P.

Age: 76

A country: USA

12. Larry Page

State:$48,8

Change per year:+ $8.1 billion

State Source: Google

Age: 44

A country: USA

Larry Page is the CEO of Alphabet, the parent company of Google. It was created in October 2015 to separate the search engine's core business from other lines of business.

Page founded Google in 1998 with Stanford University student Sergey Brin. In 2017, Page's fortune increased by $8.1 billion.

According to media reports, Larry Page is personally funding two secret flying car startups: Zee.Aero and Kitty Hawk.

13. Sergey Brin

State:$47.5 billion

Change per year: + $7.7 billion

State Source: Google

Age: 43

A country: USA

Brin is the president of Alphabet, the parent company of Google. Previously led the Google X division that created Google's "ill-fated glasses" (one of Google's biggest failures). Brin is reportedly spending more than $100 million on the world's largest airship for both personal travel and delivering aid to remote areas.

The businessman founded Google in 1998 with Larry Page, whom they met at Stanford University.

Brin, being a native of the USSR, is the richest immigrant in the United States and an outspoken critic of Donald Trump's anti-immigration initiatives.

14. Jim Walton

State:$46.4 billion

Change per year:+ $12.6 billion

State Source: walmart

Age: 67

A country: USA

Jim Walton is the youngest son of Walmart founder Sam Walton. He manages Arvest Bank, a family-owned bank with total assets in excess of $16 billion.

15. S. Robson Walton

State: $46.2 billion

State Source: walmart

Age: 73

A country: USA

Sam Walton's eldest son was chairman of Walmart for 23 years. Now he is one of three family members still involved in running the company; he and Stuart Walton, Jim Walton's son, serve on the board of directors, and his son-in-law, Gregory Penner, is chairman of Walmart.

16. Alice Walton

State:$46 billion

Change per year:+ $12.2 billion

State Source: walmart

Age: 68

A country: USA

Alice Walton is the only daughter of Walmart founder Sam Walton. Unlike the brothers who worked at Walmart, Alice focused on art projects.

17. Ma Huateng

State:$45.3 billion

State Source: Tencent

Age: 46

A country: China

Ma Huateng is Asia's richest man thanks to his Hong Kong-listed company Tencent. Tencent boasts a wide range of popular services and products, including online payments and games, as well as the popular WeChat text and voice messaging system. WeChat has nearly 1 billion active users. Tencent also has stakes in Tesla, Snapchat and Spotify.

Huateng was born in 1971 in Guangdong. The future billionaire's first job was China Motion Telecom Development, a provider of telecommunications services and products, where he developed software for pagers.

In 1998, Huaten, together with former classmates, founded Tencent, the first product of which was the OICQ messenger (similar to ICQ). In 2004, the holding entered an IPO. In 2007 and 2014, Time magazine named the businessman one of the most influential people in the world.

18. Francoise Bettencourt-Myers

State:$42.2 billion

State Source: L "Oreal

Age: 64

A country: France

Francoise Bettencourt-Meyers' mother, Liliane Becantour, owner of a stake in L'Oreal cosmetics company, died in September 2017, leaving her fortune to Francoise Bettencourt-Myers and her family.

19. Mukesh Ambani

State:$40.1 billion

State Source: Reliance Industries

Age: 60

A country: India

The Indian tycoon owns assets in the oil and gas and telecommunications industries. A surge in the share price of his Reliance Industries conglomerate has propelled Ambani into the top 20 richest people in the world for the first time in five years.

20. Jack Ma

State:$39 billion

State Source: Alibaba

Age: 53

A country: China

In 1999, Jack Ma founded Alibaba, an e-commerce company. Its users have access to a service that combines individual functions of eBay, Amazon and PayPal. In addition to online retail, the company is developing the Alipay payment system.

Alibaba's meteoric rise reflects the rapid growth of online services and content in China, the world's largest populous country world and country with the largest number Internet users.

07.12.2014 52 362 10 Reading time: 18 min.

In the last article, I introduced you to the twenty richest dollar billionaires of our time, who occupy leading positions in the Forbes ranking. Today I want to bring to your attention. It turns out that history knows examples of achieving wealth, several times greater than the success of today's billionaires. It is them that I want to consider today as a good motivational example.

TOP 10 richest people in the world in history

John Rockefeller

1. John Rockefeller. The fortune of this famous multi-billionaire from the United States was equal in terms of current dollars, taking into account inflation $318 billion, which is more than 4 times more than that of the richest man of our time, Bill Gates.

John Rockefeller is the richest man on earth in its entire history and the world's first dollar billionaire. In old dollar terms, he created $1.4 billion of wealth in his lifetime, which at the time was 1.54% of annual US GDP.

John Rockefeller was born in 1839 into a poor family with many children (his father was a lumberjack, and then became a traveling elixir dealer). From the age of 7, he began to earn extra money in the neighbors' garden and got himself a book in which he kept, and put all his earnings in a piggy bank. At 13, he borrowed $50 from a farmer friend at 7.5% per annum.

His only official employment was a short-lived job as an accounting assistant, which Rockefeller got a job at age 16, having graduated before that. accounting courses. John did not like that he was paid less than his predecessor, and soon he quit.

Further, John Rockefeller became a partner of an entrepreneur with whom he opened a joint trading business. And for that, he borrowed the missing $ 800 from his father at 10% per annum. Later, he was able to convince a representative of one of the banks to give their company a loan for business development, due to which the turnover was significantly increased.

In the early 1860s, kerosene lamps began to spread in America, which served as an increase in the demand for oil - the raw material for kerosene filled in lamps. John Rockefeller met an oil refining chemist and they formed a small oil refinery together. And already in 1870, Rockefeller created his main life asset - the oil company Standard Oil, which was engaged in the search and production of oil.

Developing and increasing momentum, John Rockefeller bought up others oil companies, and was soon able to conclude a lucrative deal with railway companies, which allowed him to crush competitors by reducing the cost of transporting oil. Rockefeller put them before a choice: to merge with him or go bankrupt, and the competitors chose the first option.

So in 1880, John Rockefeller became a monopoly oil tycoon, concentrating 95% of US oil production in his hands. Gradually, he expanded his business to other areas of activity.

It is noteworthy that from a young age, John Rockefeller constantly spent 10% of all his income on charity. Rockefeller died at the age of 97.

The most famous quote by John D. Rockefeller: whoever works all day has no time to earn money.

Andrew Carnegie

2. Andrew Carnegie. American businessman, originally from Scotland, whose fortune, in terms of modern currency, totaled $310 billion.

Born Andrew Carnegie in 1835, he came from a poor family of weavers who huddled in one room. From the age of 13, Andrew worked in a weaving factory 12 hours a day, 6 days a week, and earned $10 a month for his labor. Then he changed his job to a telegraph company with a salary of $ 4 a week.

At the age of 20, he mortgaged his mother's house and took out a $500 loan to purchase shares in the railroad company Adams Express. They began to bring Carnegie a good profit, which he began to invest in securities of metallurgical enterprises engaged in car building, shipbuilding, construction of railway lines, as well as in oil companies.

So, having become rich on the growth in the value of shares, by 1885 he was able to become the largest producer of steel and iron in the United States, forming first the Carnegie Steel Company, and then the U.S. Steel, which made him a dollar billionaire.

Like John D. Rockefeller, Andrew Carnegie devoted part of his earnings to charity throughout his life.

Nicholas II

3. Nicholas II. The TOP-3 of the richest people on the planet in the entire human history is closed by the All-Russian Emperor Nikolai II Romanov. His financial condition in current money was $253 billion.

However, unlike the aforementioned billionaires, he, as a king, inherited all his wealth, which is considered the sovereign's property, from his father Alexander III. There is no information in popular sources of information about whether he was engaged in any way in increasing his fortune, attention is paid only to his state rule.

As you know, the life of Nicholas II was tragically cut short in 1918, when he, along with his family and close associates, was shot by the Bolsheviks.

William Henry Vanderbilt

4. William Henry Vanderbilt. The next in the TOP of the richest people in the world is the American capitalist of the 19th century, William Vanderbilt, whose name is not so well known, there is little information about him. Nevertheless, he occupies the 4th line in the TOP of the richest people in the world in history - his financial condition in terms of almost $232 billion.

Vanderbilt inherited a large fortune from his father, who at first did not want to let him into the family business (he had 11 children in total, of which three sons), but then, having ascertained William's abilities as a businessman, he gradually took him into share.

After the death of his father, William Henry Vanderbilt inherited a fortune of $ 90 billion, and further increased it by more than 2 times. His main asset was the railway company. In 1885, Vanderbilt was considered the richest man in the world at that time.

Osman Ali Khan

5. Osman Ali Khan. Completes the TOP-5 of the richest people in the world in the history of Osman Ali Khan Asaf Jah The seventh comes from India. His fortune was almost $211 billion at the current rate.

Osman Ali Khan had a princely title: he inherited the throne of one of the Indian states from his father. At the same time he was head largest business for the diamond trade - the world monopoly on the supply of these precious stones. In the early 40s of the 20th century, his wealth was estimated at 2 million then dollars, which at that time was 2% of US GDP.

Andrew Mellon

6. Andrew Mellon. An American banker who briefly served as US Treasury Secretary and US Ambassador to the UK. His fortune was almost $189 billion in terms of modern currency.

Andrew Mellon was born in 1855 in the USA and followed in the footsteps of his father, who was also a banker. First, at the age of 17, with the help of his father, he opened a manufacturing company engaged in logging, and then, at the age of 27, he became a bank manager.

Throughout his life, Andrew Mellon worked in various areas of business, and already in his old age he held the largest government posts.

Henry Ford

7. Henry Ford. Here, finally, again a familiar name - the famous automobile tycoon Henry Ford, whose fortune totaled in translation to the current exchange rate. $188 billion.

Henry Ford can serve as a good example of how to achieve great success and become a dollar billionaire from scratch. He was born in 1863 in the United States to a family of emigrants living on a farm. At the age of 16, Ford ran away from home and went to look for work in Detroit, where he began his career as a mechanical engineer and gradually rose through the ranks.

In 1883, he independently assembled his first car (not for work, but as a hobby), then became a co-owner of the Detroit car company”, and in 1903 founded his own automobile company, the Ford Motor Company. This company began to carry out independent production of cars: at first the Ford A brand, but the Ford T brand cars, which began in 1908, brought its main success.

Ford Motor Company has repeatedly faced serious competition, and Henry Ford even suffered losses in this struggle, but did not stop and moved on. He constantly improved production technologies and, as a result, switched to a full production cycle: from iron ore mining to the production of a finished car.

Henry Ford was also famous for paying his workers the highest salary in the United States at that time - $ 5 a day.

As you know, the business started by Henry Ford lives on to this day: Ford cars are a huge success all over the world.

Mark Licinius Crassus

8. Mark Licinius Crassus. Ancient Roman general. Unlike other representatives of the TOP-10 richest people in the world in history, Crassus lived already in 115-53 BC. Nevertheless, he was able to come to wealth, which, in terms of current money, amounted to almost $170 billion.

It turns out that even before our era it was possible to run a prosperous business. Mark Licinius Crassus made his fortune mainly by buying up for a pittance houses that had been damaged by fires, which were a frequent occurrence in Ancient Rome due to wars, restored them with the help of 500 hired workers and resold them at a much higher price. Crassus also made money on the slave trade and silver mining.

Mark Licinius Crassus was known as a very greedy and dishonest person. There were rumors that he even set fire to houses on purpose to build a business on it. As a result, he was killed, according to one version, he was executed by pouring molten gold into his mouth as a symbol of his greed.

Basil II

9. Basil II. Byzantine emperor from the family of Alexander the Great, whose reign fell on the years 976-1025. His fortune in current money was $169 billion.

There is little information about this person, who entered the TOP 10 richest people in the world in history. It is only known that he was able to significantly expand the boundaries of the Byzantine Empire by adding other lands to it. Interestingly, after his death, the empire soon collapsed.

Cornelius Vanderbilt

10. Cornelius Vanderbilt. American businessman, father of William Henry Vanderbilt, ranked 4th in the TOP 10 richest people in the world. His wealth in today's money amounted to $167 billion.

Cornelius Vanderbilt was born in the United States in 1794 to a family of poor farmers. At the age of 11, he decided that schooling would not bring him anything good (he owns the saying “If I got an education, I would not have time to learn everything else”), dropped out and went to work as a ferryman.

At the age of 16, he borrowed $100 from his mother, with which he opened his own business: he began to ferry people on a small barge. A year later he gave 11 times more money: 1100 dollars that he managed to earn on this case.

Then Vanderbilt began to buy other ships, soon he had a whole flotilla at his disposal. Later he switched to the railway business, and also began to organize transcontinental transportation.

Cornelius Vanderbilt was known as a very tough man, merciless in the competitive struggle. It is believed that it was thanks to this character trait that he was able to achieve such a scale.

This is what the TOP 10 richest people in the world in history look like. As you can see, there are both successful and undesirable role models here. But still, it can be argued that most of the richest people on the planet, mostly US citizens, were able to do it on their own, through investment and business development, coming from poor families and starting from scratch. Which once again confirms the fact that this is possible.

I hope that it was not in vain that I carefully collected this information, and that the information received will have a certain motivating effect on you. Stay on, raise your financial literacy, and perhaps in the future it is you who will be able to bring your financial condition, your wealth and success closer to these historical characters. See you soon!

Estimate:

The richest people in the United States own the largest combined fortune on earth. In the spring of 2018, the American magazine Forbes published its annual rating of billionaires. American Bill Gates is recognized as the richest inhabitant of the planet.

He is one of the most generous patrons. He and his wife Melinda Gates are committed to supporting the health care and education systems, as well as overcoming hunger in poor countries. Wealthy Americans have given $31.5 billion to various charitable causes.

Best Investor in the World Warren Buffett

The third largest fortune in the world belongs to another American - Warren Buffett. His life became the embodiment of the American dream.

The future largest American entrepreneur began to master the basics of investing from childhood. At age 13, he filed his first income tax return while working as a delivery boy for the Washington Post. Using his own route optimization strategy, the young entrepreneur earned $1,500. Warren invested his first capital in the purchase of land, which he rented out to farmers.

Amazon founder Jeffrey Bezos

Jeffrey Bezos became the first person in history to create an online store.

After graduating with honors from Princeton University, the electronics and automation specialist worked on software development for the international trade network. Character professional activity prompted Jeffrey Bezos to create an online store accessible to any inhabitant of the planet.

The richest people in the country, to whom Jeffrey turned, at first did not support his brilliant idea. They failed to appreciate the enormous possibilities of information technology. In the United States at that time, many large shopping centers were opened for every taste and budget. Creating another store did not seem like a tempting idea. Doubts reinforced the methods of doing business in the virtual store.

Philanthropist Mark Zuckerberg

Despite his youth, the creator of the popular social networking site Facebook is regularly included in the list of the richest people on the planet. A young and talented programmer has created a fundamentally new information exchange system that has united more than half a billion people.

Mark Zuckerberg was fond of computer technology since childhood and considered himself a hacker by vocation. The idea of creating a social network came to him while studying at Harvard University. However, Mark Zuckerberg failed to raise the necessary amount for the implementation of the megaproject.

Chance brought him together with Peter Thiel, co-founder payment system PayPal. An experienced businessman appreciated the idea and invested in the project of an assertive young man for 500 thousand dollars.

In 2005, Mark Zuckerberg managed to raise $12.7 million to develop the project. In 2007, Mark Zuckerberg's company was valued at $15 million.

2018 was a successful year for Zuckerberg, earning him $3 billion.

Today, the fortune of the founder of the social network is estimated at 59 billion dollars. A successful businessman and his wife announced that they would give 99% of their shares in the company to charitable projects. The richest people are not interested in luxury goods, enjoying their favorite work.