Published 19:13 IST, January 9th 2020
From Mukesh Ambani to Elon Musk: People who the earned most in the last decade
According to Forbes 2010, the world's billionaires boasted a combined wealth of $3.6 trillion, while in 2019 their combined wealth has touched $8.7 trillion.
- World News
- 3 min read
Since the start of the decade, the number of billionaires has risen rapidly from 1,011 in 2010 to 2,153 in 2019, according to Forbes. The growth in the number of billionaires has seen a rise of around 100 percent in just a decade. According to Forbes, back in 2010, the world's billionaires boasted a combined wealth of $3.6 trillion, while in 2019 their combined wealth has touched $8.7 trillion.
List in ascending order
The only Indian in the list of 31 people is none other than Reliance Industries boss Mukesh Ambani, who grabbed the 27th spot in the list of people who earned the most in the last decade. Forbes reported that Ambani's net worth has risen from $29 billion in 2010 to $50 billion last year. Ambani was once the world's richest man but saw his wealth fall during the early 2010s. Since then, Ambani has seen slow growth in his wealth dropping from the world's fourth wealthiest to the 13th.
CEO of Tesla and SpaceX, Elon Musk, who was just another multimillionaire in 2010 made his debut in the Forbes list of billionaires in 2012 with a net worth of $2 billion. Since then Musk has never turned back and has grown into becoming one of the world's most headline-grabbing CEO. According to Forbes, Musk's fortune in 2019 was valued at $22.3 billion which makes him the world's 40th wealthiest person.
The world's second-richest individual, Bill Gates is at number five on the list of person who earned the most in the last decade. According to Forbes, Microsoft's co-founder's wealth recorded a dramatic rise as his fortune grew from $53 billion in 2010 to $96.5 in 2019. Despite Bill donating billions to good causes via The Giving Pledge, his fortunes increased by a whopping $42 billion in a decade.
Mark Zuckerberg had entered the Forbes list of billionaires in 2010 as the world's youngest billionaire. The Facebook boss had entered the list with a mere $4 billion and was the joint 212th richest person in the world. However, with the rise in use of social media, Zuckerberg's fortunes have also recorded a jump as in 2019 his net worth stands at $62.3 billion and he is now the eighth richest person in the world according to Forbes list.
Amazon's Jeff Bezos has accumulated more wealth than any other person in the world in the last decade. In 2010, Bezos stood at 43rd position in Forbes list of billionaires with a fortune of $12.3 billion. But since then his company's share has grown more than 14-fold which makes him the world's richest individual currently with a net worth of $131 billion. Forbes reported that Bezos has seen a growth of $118.7 billion in his wealth.
Updated 19:13 IST, January 9th 2020