Since 1987, Forbes Magazine has compiled the Billionaires list, which lists the wealthiest people in the world in order of proven net worth. Every March, this compilation offers a glimpse into the world’s wealthiest billionaires.
Based on their declared assets, after deducting debt and other factors, each person’s approximate net worth is calculated. The ranking revealed each person’s total net worth expressed in US dollars. Not included in these rankings are monarchs or autocrats whose riches stem from their position.
1. Francoise Bettencourt Meyers
According to Forbes, Meyers is the richest woman on the planet with a total net worth of $94.9 billion. She is a philanthropist and businesswoman from France. Her family owns 33% of the massive cosmetics corporation L’Oreal, and she is the granddaughter of the company’s founder.
She currently serves as the chair of the makeup company and has been a board member since 1997. Meyer is ranked eleventh on the Forbes list of the richest individuals in the world.
2. Alice Walton
With a $61.3 billion total net worth, Alice is the second richest woman in the world. She owns 50% of Walmart and is the lone child of the company’s founder, Sam Walton. She is an avid art enthusiast with a personal collection of works valued at hundreds of millions of dollars.
3. Julia Koch
Julia became a billionaire when she and her kids acquired a 42% share in Koch Industries from her late husband, David, who passed away in August 2019 at the age of 79. Julia currently has a net worth of $59 billion. Although she was born in Iowa, she relocated to New York in the 1980s to work as Adolfo’s assistant, a fashion designer.
Ten million dollars were donated by her and her late husband to support food allergy research at Stanford Children’s Hospital and Mount Sinai Medical Center.
4.Jacqueline Mars
With a net worth of $38.3 billion, Jacqueline is the fourth richest woman in the world. Owning a third of Mars Incorporated, the candy and pet food company established by her grandfather Frank C. Mars in 1911, she is the world’s largest candy maker. She inherited the business together with Pedigree and IAMS.
5. Miriam Adelson
The largest casino operator in the world, Las Vegas Sands, has Adelson as a major shareholder. Following the death of her husband, longstanding Republican Party kingmaker Sheldon Adelson, in 2021, she inherited the interest. According to estimates from Forbes, the doctor has donated close to $1 billion to medical research and drug development during her lifetime.
6. Rafaela Aponte-Diamant
Among the wealthiest women in the world is Rafaela Aponte-Diamant. Together with her husband Gianluigi, she has a 50% share in the Mediterranean Shipping Company (MSC) Group, the biggest shipping company in the world. In 1970, they jointly joined the shipping industry, and in 1988, they branched out into cruises. MSC today has 675 offices, 150,000 employees, and a number of commercial divisions, including MSC Cruises and the MSC Foundation, which concentrate on humanitarian and environmental causes.
7. Mackenzie Scott
With a net worth of $29.5 billion, award-winning author Mackenzie, the ex-wife of Amazon founder Jeff Bezos, joined the billionaire list in 2023. Ever since he and Amazon founder Jeff Bezos separated in 2019, Scott has become one of the world’s most active philanthropists. In less than two years, she has given more than 1,250 organisations $12.5 billion in donations.
8. Gina Rinehart
Gina, whose father, Lang Hancock, founded the Australian mining and agricultural corporation Hancock Prospecting Group in 1992, is the executive chairman and has a net worth of $26.9 billion.
Despite having dropped out of Sydney University’s Economics program, she is the wealthiest individual in Australia and one of Forbes’ 100 most influential women worldwide.
9. Susanne Klatten
Susanne is the owner and deputy chairman of Atlanta, a chemical and pharmaceutical firm, and has a net worth of $24.6 billion. In addition, she received roughly 19% of the German carmaker BMW from her father Herbert Quandt and mother Johanna Quandt.
10. Iris Fontbona
Iris is worth $22.8 billion in total. She and her kids run Antofagasta Plc, a company that trades on the London Stock Exchange and owns copper mines in Chile. She was the spouse of late Chilean magnate Andrónico Luksic, who amassed fortune in beverages and mining before passing away in 2015. She is a big shareholder in Quiñenco, a publicly traded company based in Chile that is well-known for its involvement in manufacturing, banking, and beer.
Conclusion
In the realm of billionaires, these women have broken through the glass ceiling, demonstrating that wealth transcends gender. Their varied origins, routes to success, and charitable undertakings show that being among the wealthiest people in the world involves more than just acquiring fortunes—it also entails having a constructive influence on society. These women represent role models in the worldwide arena of power and riches as the Forbes Billionaires list keeps growing.
FAQs
- According to Forbes, who is the richest woman in the world?
Ans,Francoise Bettencourt Meyers, whose net worth is $94.9 billion, is the richest woman on the planet, according to Forbes.
- According to Forbes, who is Australia’s richest woman?
Ans. With a net worth of $26.9 billion, Gina Rinehart is the richest person in Australia. She is the executive chairperson of the mining and agriculture company Hancock Prospecting Group.
- Which sectors are the women on the list represented in?
Ans. Numerous industries are represented by the women on the Forbes Billionaires list: manufacturing (Mars Incorporated), technology (Amazon), mining (Hancock Prospecting Group), retail (Walmart), cosmetics (L’Oreal), and more.
