TOP 10 RICHEST BUSINESSMEN OF THE WORLD IN 2013
Here are the top 10
richest businessmen in the world, with their estimated net worth according to
the reveals made for 2013:
1) CARLOS SLIM HELU
NET WORTH: R684-billion
COMPANY: Telecom
The Mexican investor
and business magnate started by selling dry goods and finally ended up in real
estate, mining and investments. A great philanthropist, he has also donated
R36-billion to the Mexico City Downtown Foundation.
2) BILL GATES
NET WORTH: R553-billion
COMPANY: Microsoft
Gates has not only
been eminent in the world of PCs and Microsoft, but has also been a recurring
figure in lists of the world's wealthiest people and was in fact the wealthiest
from 1995-2009. In 2011, he was the wealthiest American and the second richest
worldwide. He started out as a brilliant student who enrolled at Harvard
College with a SAT score of 1590/1600, and was the first to propose a faster
algorithm for pancake sorting.
3) WARREN BUFFET
NET WORTH: R399-billion
COMPANY: Berkshire
Hathaway
He has been called
everything from the "Wizard of Omaha”, to the “Oracle of Omaha”, and also
the “Sage of Omaha”, which is where he launched his career an investment
salesman and stockbroker, which eventually led to him becoming a
multimillionaire (and now billionaire). He has reportedly given away a large
percentage of his fortune.
4) BERNARD ARNAULT
NET WORTH: R371-billion
COMPANY: LVMH
Arnault was the only child
of the family who proposed to shift the focus of their business and liquidate
the construction division, to move into the real estate business. He personally
indulged in a more conservative economic path and served as a CEO to a luxury
goods company.
5) AMANCIO ORTEGA GAONA
NET WORTH: R340-billion
COMPANY: Lara
The wildly popular chain
of Zara clothing and accessory retail stores belongs to Spanish fashion
executive, Gaona. He focused on quality and implemented a shrewd business plan
where he kept profit margins very low, which eventually paid dividends.
6) LARRY ELLISON
NET WORTH: R326-billion
COMPANY: Oracle
The chief executive of one
of the world’s leading enterprise software companies earns 22.5% of his
fortunes from the Oracle Corporation. Research into “A relational Model of Data
for Large Shared Data Banks” inspired him to enter into the database arena.
7) EIKE BATISTA
NET WORTH: R272-billion
COMPANY: Mining Oil
This Brazilian business
magnate has made his fortune in oil, gas and mining explorations. He is also
the chairman of five companies under the EBX Group umbrella.
8) STEFAN PERSSON
NET WORTH: R236-billion
COMPANY: H&M
The current chairman and
main shareholder of a fashion giant,
Persson is a Swedish business magnate with a kind heart who funds the Mentor
Foundation, a charity that combats substance abuse among young people.
9) LA KA-SHING
NET WORTH: R231-billion
COMPANY: Diversified
Asia’s most powerful man
is the world’s largest operator of container terminals and the world’s largest
beauty and health retailer. Working 16 hours a day since the age of 15 , he was
forced to leave school after the death of his father. By 50, he honed the
tactical skills and sharp mind of an entrepreneur that allowed him to start his
own company.
10) KARL ALBRECHT
NET WORTH: R230-billion
COMPANY: Aldi
Albrecht is the oldest and
most familiar (recurring) individual to be found in any top 20 list of
billionaires. Along with his brother, he has founded and continues to run the
rule over discount supermarket chain, Aldi.
