TOP 10 RICHEST PEOPLE IN THE WORLD

It is always interesting to learn about the world’s billionaires.  Many of these individuals
control more assets then many small nations.  A couple people on the list have gained a
large portion of their wealth from family fortune, but the majority of the entries are
self-made billionaires.  On March 11, 2009 Forbes magazine comprised a list of the
wealthiest people in the world, net worth represents the estimated value of assets less
debt.  This list is going to be examining the lives and fortune of the richest individuals in
the world.  It will be organized by county.    
   

10. Al-Waleed bin Talal

Richest Person in Saudi Arabia

$13.3 Billion

Al-Waleed bin Talal is a member of the Saudi Royal Family.  He is the nephew of the
Saudi Arabian King Abdullah, and the Grandson of the first Lebanese Prime Minister
after independence Riad as-Solh.  Al-Waleed completed a Bachelors of Science degree
in business administration from Menlo College in 1979 and masters in social science at
the Maxwell School of Citizenship and Public Affairs of Syracuse University, in 1985.
Despite being the nephew of King Abdullah of Saudi Arabia, he has stayed outside of
the core of political power in Saudi Arabia, and instead built a large international
corporation called the Kingdom Holding Company, through which he makes his
international investments. 
Al-Waleed bin Talal has made large investments in AOL, Apple Inc., Worldcom,
Motorola, News Corporation Ltd and other technology and media companies.
Al-Waleed owns the yacht Kingdom 5KR, 300 cars including a diamond-covered
Mercedes SL600 worth an estimated $4.8 million, and the largest private jet in the
world.  He has amassed a fortune through investments in real estate and the stock
market, although his overall wealth has dropped considerably since the financial crisis
and economic recession hit.  His stake in Citibank was depreciated and Al-Waleed once
held a net worth of $22 billion.  He is the 22nd richest person in the world and the
wealthiest in Saudi Arabia.

9. Li Ka-shing

Richest Person in Hong Kong

$16.2 billion

Li Ka-shing was born in Chaozhou in the Guangdong Province, People's Republic of
China.  The Harvard Business School describes Li Ka-shing’s life accomplishments,
“From his humble beginnings in the China as a teacher’s son, a refugee, and later as a
salesman, Li provides a lesson in integrity and adaptability. Through hard work, and a
reputation for remaining true to his internal moral compass, he was able to build a
business empire that includes: banking, construction, real estate, plastics, cellular
phones, satellite television, cement production, retail outlets (pharmacies and
supermarkets), hotels, domestic transportation (sky train), airports, electric power, steel
production, ports, and shipping.”  Li's businesses cover almost every facet of life in
Hong Kong.
   

He is currently Chairman of Hutchison Whampoa Limited (HWL) and Cheung Kong
Holdings; through them, he is the world's largest operator of container terminals and the
world's largest health and beauty retailer.  The Cheung Kong Group's market
capitalization is HK$1,230 billion (US$157 billion) as of January 2008.  The group
operates in 55 countries and employs over 260,000 staff worldwide.  Li Ka-shing is
considered one of the most powerful figures in Asia.  He has gained a reputation for
leading a no-frills lifestyle, and is known to wear simple black dress shoes and an
inexpensive Seiko wristwatch, although his house is incredible and in one of Hong
Kong's most expensive precincts, Deep Water Bay.  Li is also regarded as one of Asia's
most generous philanthropists, donating over US$1 billion to date to charity and other
various causes.  He is the 16th richest person in the world and the wealthiest of East
Asian descent. 

8. Bernard Arnault
Richest Person in France

$16.5 Billion

Bernard Arnault was born in Roubaix, France.  Arnault graduated from École
Polytechnique with an engineering degree in 1971.  Upon graduating he convinced his
father to liquidate the construction division of his company for 40 million francs, and to
change the focus of company to real estate, using the name Férinel.  When socialist
François Mitterrand was elected President of France in 1981, Bernard Arnault
immigrated to the United States and created Ferinel Inc.  He prospered by developing
condominiums in Palm Beach, Florida.   Three years later, when the French Socialists
switched to a more conservative economic course, Arnault returned to France and
became the CEO of Financière Agache, a luxury goods company.   

As of March 2007, Arnault owns a 47.5% plurality of conglomerate LVMH (Moët
Hennessy Louis Vuitton), along with clothing retailer Christian Dior SA and personal
holding company Groupe Arnault SAS.  He is the Chairman and CEO of all three
companies.  Bernard Arnault is a noted art collector and he has created a Louis Vuitton
foundation for contemporary art, which should open at the Jardin d'acclimatation in
2010.  Bernard Arnault is the 14th richest person in the world and the wealthiest in
France.  In 2007, he was listed among Time magazine's 100 Most Influential People in
the world.

7. Amancio Ortega Gaona

Richest Person in Spain

$18.3 Billion

Amancio Ortega Gaona was born in Busdongo de Arbas, León, Spain.  Ortega arrived at
A Coruña, Spain, at the age of 14 and by the age 27 he founded the company
Confecciones Goa, which made bathrobes.  However, his real break would come in
1975 when he opened the first store that would grow into the enormously popular chain
of fashion stores called Zara.  He wasn’t finished there and went on to become the
chairman and founder of the Inditex Group.  Inditex is a large Spanish corporation and
one of the world's largest fashion groups.  It is made up of almost a hundred companies
dealing with activities related to textile design, production and distribution.
   

Inditex runs over 4,350 stores worldwide and owns brands like Zara, Massimo Dutti,
Bershka, Oysho, Pull and Bear, Zara Home, Kiddy's Class, Uterqüe, and Stradivarius.
Inditex headquarters are located in Arteixo, a village in the province of A Coruña in
Galicia, in the north west of Spain.  Personally, Ortega keeps a very low profile and
there are practically no photographs of him.  He refuses to wear a tie, and likes to dress
in blue jeans and T-shirts.  He is said to take a very active part in the production and
design process in his company.  He has never given an interview and currently lives with
his wife in a discreet apartment building in the centre of A Coruña.  Amancio Ortega
Gaona is the 10th richest man in the world and the wealthiest in Spain.

6. Lakshmi Mittal

Richest Person in the United Kingdom

$19.3 Billion

Lakshmi Mittal was born in Sadulpur village, in the Churu district of Rajasthan, India.
He resides in Kensington, which is a district of West London, England within the Royal
Borough of Kensington and Chelsea.  He bought his house in 2003 for $117 million,
making it the most expensive house ever purchased.  Mittal is the only individual on this
list that resides in a separate country from his birth.  Lakshmi Narayan Mittal began his
career working in the family’s steelmaking business in India, and has over 30 years of
experience working in steel and related technology.  He founded the company Mittal
Steel in 1976.  He has been responsible for the development of its businesses ever
since.
   

Mittal Steel is a global steel producer with operations in 14 countries.  Mittal Steel is the
largest steelmaker in the world, with shipments of 42.1 million tons of steel and profits
of over $22 billion in 2004.  Today he is the CEO of ArcelorMittal, since the merger
between the companies.  He also serves as a non-executive director of Goldman Sachs,
EADS and ICICI Bank.  Mittal is the chairman of the World Steel Association.  Lakshmi
Mittal is the 8th richest person in the world and the wealthiest living in Britain.  He is
also known for spending upwards of $55 million to host his daughter's wedding
celebration in Versailles in 2004.  

5. Mukesh Ambani

Richest Person in India

$19.5 Billion

Mukesh Ambani was born in Aden, Yemen.  Ambani has incredible business savy and
connections.  He is the chairman, managing director and the largest shareholder of
Reliance Industries, India's largest private sector enterprise and a Fortune 500 company.
His original investments in the company were funded by purchasing large standby
letters of credit, which were monetized by several Swiss banks which afforded him
guaranteed loans for the purchase.  Mukesh and his younger brother Anil are sons of the
late founder of Reliance Industries, Dhirubhai Ambani.
   

Reliance Industries is the second largest private sector conglomerate in the world.  The
company has an annual turnover of US$ 35.9 billion and had a profit of US$ 4.85
billion for the fiscal year ending in March 2008.  The company's oil-related operations
form the core of its business, but it has diversified its dealings in recent years.  Reliance
Industries has more than 3 million shareholders, making it one of the world's most
widely held stocks.  In his personal time Mukesh likes to visit Kruger National Park in
South Africa and he owns the Mumbai Indians cricket team.  Mukesh Ambani is the 7th
richest person in the world and the wealthiest in all of Asia.   

Karl Albrecht

Richest Person in Germany

$21.5 Billion

Karl and Theo Albrecht were raised under modest circumstances in Essen, Germany.
Their mother had a small grocery store in the worker’s quarter of Schonnebeck.  Karl
Albrecht served in the German Army during World War II.  After the end of the war, the
brothers took over their mother's business and opened the first Aldi (Albrecht-Discount)
in 1961.  Aldi is a discount supermarket chain based in Germany.  Aldi's operations
were later divided between the brothers, with Karl taking control of the more profitable
Aldi Süd (South), and Theo managing Aldi Nord (North).  In 2002, Karl Albrecht
stepped down as chairman of the board of Aldi’s and the business is no longer run by
any of his family members.   

Aldi's German operations currently consist of Aldi Nord's 35 individual regional
companies with about 2,500 stores in Northern and Eastern Germany, and Aldi Süd's 31
regional companies with 1,600 stores in Western and Southern Germany.
Internationally, Aldi Nord operates in Denmark, France, the Benelux countries, the
Iberian Peninsula and Poland, while Aldi Süd operates in the United States, Ireland, the
UK, Hungary, Greece, Switzerland, Austria, Slovenia, and Australia.  Numbers
indicated that 95% of blue-collar workers and 80% of self-employed Germans shop at
Aldi.  In recent years Karl Albrecht has withdrawn himself from public life and little is
known about him, except the fact that he is the 6th most wealthy man in the world and
the richest in Germany.

3. Ingvar Kamprad

Richest Person in Switzerland

$22 Billion

Ingvar Kamprad grew up on a farm near the small village of Agunnaryd in Ljungby
Municipality in the province of Smaland, Sweden.  From a very young age Kamprad was
interested in business and would often sell items on the street, including matches,
Christmas tree decorations, seeds, and ballpoint pens and pencils.  When he was 17 his
father gave him a reward for succeeding in his studies and Ingvar Kamprad used that
money to create the international company IKEA.  The acronym IKEA is made up of the
initials of his name plus those of Elmtaryd, the family farm where he was born; and the
nearby village Agunnaryd.  The store sells home products, flat pack furniture,
accessories, and bathroom and kitchen items.
   

There are 301 IKEA stores in 37 separate countries, with the most residing in Germany
(44) and the U.S. (36).  Ingvar Kamprad lives a modest life and drives a 15 year old
Volvo, flies only economy class, and encourages IKEA employees to always write on
both sides of a paper.  He does own a villa in an upmarket part of Switzerland, a large
country estate in Sweden, and a vineyard in Provence in France.  Today, Kamprad
personally retains little ownership in the company, having transferred his interest to
Stichting INGKA Foundation and INGKA Holding as part of a complex tax sheltering
scheme that leaves his actual degree of control vague.  As of 2009 he is the richest
person in Europe and the 5th wealthiest person in the world. 

2. Carlos Slim

Richest Person in Mexico

$35 Billion

Carlos Slim was born in Mexico City, Mexico.  He studied engineering at the
Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México.  Slim gained notoriety when he led a group
of investors in buying Telmex and Telnor from the Mexican government in 1990 in a
public tender during the presidency of Carlos Salinas.  Today, 90% of the telephone
lines in Mexico are operated by Telmex.  The mobile company, Telcel, which Slim also
controls, operates almost 80% of all the country's cell phones.  These operations have
financed Slim's expansion abroad.  Over the past five years, his wireless carrier América
Móvil has expanded cell phone service across Latin America.
   

He was able to raise money for his original telecommunications company by purchasing
standby letters of credit which enabled him to obtain guaranteed loans which provided
the capital.  In January of 2009, the financially-troubled Times Company announced that
it had accepted a $250 million loan from Carlos Slim.  He largely controls the
telecommunications industry in Mexico and much of Latin America.  He is currently the
third wealthiest person in the world with a net worth of around US$35 billion.  Carlos
Slim's wealth is the equivalent of roughly 2% of Mexico's annual economic output. 

1. Bill Gates

Richest Person in America

$40 Billion

Bill Gates III is an American business man that co-founded the computer software
juggernaut Microsoft.   Bill Gates was born in Seattle, Washington.  He scored 1590
out of 1600 on the SAT and subsequently enrolled at Harvard College in the fall of
1973.  In 1980, IBM approached Gates and Microsoft asking for the invention of an
operating system for the IBM PC.  He developed MS-DOS, which launched Microsoft
and became the main operating system used by personal computers in the 1980’s.
Microsoft launched its first retail version of Microsoft Windows on November 20,
1985.
 
Many updated versions of the Windows operating systems have been released over the
years, as of July 2009, Windows had approximately 93% of the market share of the
client operating systems for usage on the Internet.  Bill Gates held the title of CEO of
Microsoft Corp. for many years until he stepped down in 2000.  Gates' last full-time day
at Microsoft was June 27, 2008 and today he remains a non-executive chairman of the
company and helps run the Bill and Melinda Gates foundation.  He is currently ranked as
the richest person in the world with a net worth of over $40 billion.

Honorable Mention
David Thompson

Richest Person in Canada

$13 Billion

David Thomson, 3rd Baron Thomson of Fleet is a Canadian businessman.  He is the son
of the late Kenneth Thomson, and his siblings are actress Taylor Thomson and Peter
Thomson.  David Thompson attended Upper Canada College and received a MA in
history from Selwyn College at the University of Cambridge in 1978.  Thomson has
worked a number of positions in companies controlled by his family. He was manager
of The Bay store at Cloverdale Mall in Etobicoke, and President of Zellers.  In 2002, he
became chairman of Thomson Corporation and after the acquisition of Reuters was
named the chairman of merged entity, Thomson Reuters.
   

Thomas Reuters is one of the world's largest information companies, active in healthcare
sectors, law, science & technology research, and tax & accounting sectors.  Thomson
Reuters brands include Sweet & Maxwell in the UK and West Publishing in North
America.  David Thompson has given hardly any interviews to the press and maintains a
low public profile.  He is a patron of the Art Gallery of Ontario and currently lives in
Toronto, Ontario, Canada.  The Thompson Corporation fortune in which David controls
is worth more than $13 billion and he is the richest person in Canada.  David Thompson
is the 24th wealthiest person in the world.