The Forbes list of the world’s billionaires was released Monday with Wal-Mart heirs Christy Walton and Jim Walton moving into the top 10 for 2014 and Christy Walton regaining the title of the world’s richest woman.
For 2014, Forbes magazine ranked 1,646 billionaires with an aggregate net worth of $6.4 trillion, up from $5.4 trillion a year ago. It was the 28th year the magazine published the list.
Microsoft’s Bill Gates sits at the top of the list this year with $76 billion, taking the top spot from Carlos Slim Helu of Mexico who had held it for the past four years. Gates has ranked No. 1 on the list for 15 of the last 20 years.
Helu, a telecommunications mogul, had a net worth of $72 billion. Amancio Ortega, a clothing retailer from Spain, retained his No. 3 spot with $64 billion. Warren Buffett, CEO of Berkshire Hathaway, alsoheld on to his spot, ranking No. 4 with $58.2 billion as did Oracle founder Larry Ellison at No. 5 with $48 billion.
The list of billionaires grew by 268 this year. There were 172 women on the list for 2014, up from 138 in the year earlier and the highest number ever recorded. A net worth of $31 billion was needed to make the top 20 this year, up $8 billion from 2013.
Christy Walton of Jackson, Wyo., the is richest woman on the list, and therefore the world, with a net worth of $36.7 billion putting her at No. 9, up two spots from last year. She regained the top spot from France’s Liliane Bettencourt of L’Oreal who now ranks No 11 with $34.5 billion. Christy Walton is the widow of John T. Walton, Wal-Mart Stores Inc. founder Sam Walton’s son who died in an ultralight aircraft crash in 2005. She has ranked as the richest woman in the world on the Forbes list four of the past five years.
Jim Walton of Bentonville, chairman and CEO of Arvest Bank Group and a son of Sam Walton also cracked the top 10,ranking No. 10 with $34.7 billion, up from No. 14 last year.
Shares of Wal-Mart, which account for much of the wealth of the Walton relatives, did well this year and closed at $72.99 on Monday in trading on the New York Stock Exchange. Shares traded between $71.50 and $81.37 over the past year.
Alice Walton of Fort Worth, Sam Walton’s only daughter and the founder of Bentonville’s Crystal Bridges Museum of American Art, ranked No. 13 with $34.3 billion, up from No. 16 last year. S. Robson Walton of Bentonville, the eldest son in the family and Wal-Mart’s chairman, ranked right behind her at No. 14 with $34.2 billion, up from No. 17 in 2013.
Forbes analysts credited a booming stock market and the resurgences of technology with the United States having the most billionaires on the list of any country with 492, chased by China with 152 and Russia with 111. The list also showed first-time billionaires in the countries of Algeria, Lithuania and Tanzania.
The billionaire who saw his net worth gain the most was Mark Zuckerberg of Facebook, who saw an increase of $15.2 billion to $28.5 billion for 2014.He ranked No. 21 on the list, up from No. 66 last year.
Two Wal-Mart heirs, two Arkansas-based tycoons, and a former Arkansas Razorback saw their rankings fall this year.
Ann Walton Kroenke of Columbia, Mo., daughter of Wal-Mart co-founder James “Bud” Walton, Sam’s brother, ranked No. 305 with $4.8 billion, down from No. 276 last year. Stanley Kroenke, her husband, ranked No. 253 with $5.6 billion, down slightly from No. 248
Nancy Walton Laurie of Henderson, Nev., another daughter of Bud Walton, ranked No. 367 with $4.1 billion, down from No. 346 last year.
Jerry Jones, owner of the Dallas Cowboys and former Arkansas Razorback, ranked No. 551 with $3 billion, down from No. 527, where 12 others also ranked. He owns oil and gas wells and has invested in real estate in the suburbs of Dallas.
Warren Stephens, chief executive officer of Little Rock-based investment bank Stephens Inc., ranked No. 687 with $2.5 billion, also down from No. 527 last year.
Johnelle Hunt of Rogers, an entrepreneur and widow of J.B. Hunt, founder of J.B. Hunt Transport Services Inc. in Lowell, ranked No. 828 with $2.1 billion, down from No. 792 in 2013.
Forbes said about two-thirds of the billionaires were self-made, while 13 percent inherited their riches and 21 percent have been adding on to fortunes they obtained. The list saw 100 drop off as their holdings fell below $1 billion, while 16 passed away. Turkey lost 19 billionaires and Indonesia lost eight.
The list is based on an assessment of the billionaires’ wealth as of Feb. 12, according to the magazine. The list ranks individuals and not large families that share substantial fortunes. It does not include royal family members, royalty or dictators.
Front Section, Pages 1 on 03/04/2014