Despite giving tons of the stuff away, Bill Gates still has loads of it. And even more than he had this time last year. The vast wealth of the Microsoft co-founder has ensured he retains his position at the top of Forbes’ latest list of the richest people in the US today.
The list, published on Wednesday, puts his net worth at $59 billion, up $5 billion on last year’s figures. But look who’s coming up the list – that’s right, Facebook co-founder Mark Zuckerberg. The 27-year-old is positioned at 14 on the list, up from 35 a year ago. His net worth is estimated to be $17.5 billion. This now puts him just ahead of Google’s Larry Page and Sergey Brin, both placed in 15th position with their net worth put at $16.7 billion.
Amazon’s CEO Jeff Bezos, with an estimated wealth of $19.1 billion, finds himself one position ahead of Zuckerberg.
Other names from the world of technology also make the list, albeit a few places behind Bezos and Zuckerberg. Microsoft’s current CEO, Steve Ballmer, is in 19th place with a net worth of $13.9 billion, while Steve Jobs appears, somewhat surprisingly, down in 39th place with a net worth estimated at $7 billion.
Google chairman Eric Schmidt, currently facing a Senate Judiciary Commission in Washington in antitrust hearings, and Ebay founder Pierre Omidyar, both find themselves in 50th position with a net worth of $6.2 billion. Omidyar has always said he’ll give away most of his wealth in his lifetime and last year signed the Gates and Buffet Giving Pledge. Talking of Buffet, he’s right up there in second position, with his net worth put at $39 billion.
Other names you might recognize include Michael Dell in 18th place, worth an estimated $15 billion, and Microsoft co-founder Paul Allen in 23rd place, whose net worth is put at $13.2 billion.
If you’re wondering how Forbes comes up with the figures, you can find out more about its methodology here.
