The world's 10 wealthiest people are now worth a combined $1.5 trillion, a new report said.
"The Top 10 added $426 billion, 56 percent of total new wealth, and are worth $1.5 trillion, making up 10 percent of the total list," said Hurun Report, a research company based in China, in its 2024 Global Rich List.
"Eight are from the USA and one from each of France and India," the report added.
Hurun, which publishes an annual Global Rich List, is one of the leading indicators of the richest billionaires worldwide.
Leading the group, Tesla CEO Elon Musk reclaimed his position as the world's wealthiest individual, with a fortune of $231 billion, marking his third time at the summit in the past four years.
The report attributed Musk's financial resurgence primarily to Tesla's buoyant stock performance and the escalating valuation of SpaceX, his aerospace company, which has benefited from successful launches and significant government contracts.
Amazon founder Jeff Bezos secured second place with a net worth of $185 billion, driven by the success of Amazon's cloud computing division. This marked a significant recovery for Bezos, reflecting a 57 percent increase in his wealth.
In third place, Bernard Arnault of LVMH held a fortune of $175 billion despite facing the largest wealth depletion among his billionaire peers this year and LVMH losing its crown as Europe's most valuable company.
This year's list showed the meteoric rise of Meta's Mark Zuckerberg, the youngest member of the top 10 by more than a decade. The 39-year-old saw his wealth leap to $158 billion as Meta's stock value more than doubled, securing him a place in the top 10. Also rising to the top 10 is former Google CEO Larry Page, with a net worth of $123 billion, underscoring the tech industry's substantial influence on global wealth.
The list also showed the displacement of luxury and cosmetics moguls Bertrand Puech of Hermès, who died in January, and Françoise Bettencourt Meyers of L'Oréal, the richest woman in the world, from the top 10—signaling a shift in the sources of billionaire wealth.
Despite China losing 155 billionaires, it remains the global leader with 814 billionaires, closely followed by the United States, which boasts 800 billionaires after adding 109 to its tally. China and the U.S. account for almost half of the world's billionaire population, despite a 4 percent decline.
On a city scale, New York reclaimed its title as the world's billionaire capital, with London rising to second place.
India emerged as a significant contender, adding 84 billionaires, almost doubling the count in the U.K. Mumbai experienced rapid growth, becoming the fastest-growing billionaire capital globally and overtaking Beijing to become Asia's billionaire capital, breaking into the world's top three billionaire cities for the first time.
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Newsweek is committed to challenging conventional wisdom and finding connections in the search for common ground.
About the writer
Aadil Brar is a reporter for Newsweek based in Taipei, Taiwan. He covers international security, U.S.-China relations, and East Asian ... Read more
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