There are 1,810 billionaires in the world, with an aggregate net worth of $6.5 trillion, according to the 2016 Forbes list of the world’s richest people. This is a snapshot of the countries with the most billionaire citizens, taken on Feb. 12, along with their aggregate net worth and the richest individual in each country.
Who are the billionaires of Norway, Mexico, and Russia? What industries make them rich? Did they inherit their money or are they self-made?
Readers might anticipate some of our trends. Clothing, retail and food billionaires dominate in France, Spain, and Italy, energy and mining are well-represented in Russia and technology and finance fortunes abound in the United States.
But they might be surprised to learn that no Australian or Taiwanese billionaire got rich solely from inherited wealth, or that more than half of Singapore’s 17 billionaires derive their fortunes from real estate.
Read on for a country-by-country breakdown of the world’s billionaires.
#25 Norway
Billionaire Population: 13
Combined Net Worth: $24.8B
Richest Individual: Odd Reitan ($4.2B)
Norway’s list of billionaires largely made their money through the retail, shipping and service industries. The country’s richest man, Odd Reitan, made his money in grocery stores. Reitan’s Reitangruppen grocery and convenience stores have spread throughout Scandinavia and the Baltic countries since he opened the first shop in 1972. The privately held company is now the fifth largest in Norway, and Reitan owns 100% of it.
#24 Mexico
Billionaire Population: 14
Combined Net Worth: $99.6B
Richest Individual: Carlos Slim-Helu ($50B)
Mexico has 14 billionaires, and one of them is fourth-richest person in the world. Carlos Slim Helu was the world's second richest man in 2015, but he hit some headwinds in the past year as shares of his pan-Latin American mobile phone operator, America Movil, took a beating. Those losses drove a $27.1 billion drop in Slim's net worth.
#23 Thailand
Billionaire Population: 16
Combined Net Worth: $44.9B
Richest Individual: Charoen Sirivadhanabhakdi ($10.7B)
Billionaires who made their own money or increased their inherited wealth dominate in Thailand. This year, Thai spirits tycoon Charoen Sirivadhanabhakdi saw his fortune drop $2.5 billion on a fall in shares of his Singapore-listed Thai Beverage, best known for Chang beer. In a big move into retail, Charoen recently acquired a majority stake in Big C Supercenter, Thailand's second-largest supermarkets operator, for $3.5 billion.
#21 (Tie) Singapore
Billionaire Population: 17
Combined Net Worth: $44.5B
Richest Individual: Robert & Philip Ng ($7.6B)
More than half of Singapore’s billionaires derive their net worth from real estate, though property siblings Robert and Philip Ng saw their wealth fall by $2 billion in 2015 amid a weak market. For the past three years, the brothers have been expanding their footprint in Australia, snatching trophy assets such as the Westin Sydney hotel and its adjoining heritage retail podium, which they acquired for $342 million last year.
#21 (Tie) Israel
Billionaire Population: 17
Combined Net Worth: $48.2B
Richest Individual: Eyal Ofer ($8.4B)
Israeli billionaires derive their wealth from a wide range of industries, and most of them are self-made. However, Israel’s richest person, Eyal Ofer, inherited wealth and grew it. Ofer’s interests are concentrated in shipping and global real estate. He is the chairman of Ofer Global group, as well as Zodiac Maritime, a London-based shipping corporation. Ofer has also built up a trove of fine art, having inherited his father's collection.
#20 Indonesia
Billionaire Population: 20
Combined Net Worth: $49.8B
Richest Individual: R. Budi Hartono ($8.1B)
None of Indonesia’s 20 billionaires derive their worth solely from inherited wealth. R. Budi Hartono and his brother, Michael, are the richest people in Indonesia thanks to a fortune that goes back to their father, Oei Wie Gwan, who in 1950 acquired a bankrupt Indonesian cigarette company, later calling it Djarum. It is today one of the biggest cigarette-makers in the nation.
#19 Spain
Billionaire Population: 21
Combined Net Worth: $113.2B
Richest Individual: Armancio Ortega ($67B)
The four richest Spaniards derive their net worth from clothing and retail. Foremost among them is Zara founder Amancio Ortega, the richest European and the wealthiest retailer in the world. He surprised the retail establishment: limiting advertising, expanding aggressively, and controlling much of his supply chain. Louis Vuitton fashion director Daniel Piette once called Zara "possibly the most innovative and devastating retailer in the world."
#17 (Tie) Taiwan
Billionaire Population: 25
Combined Net Worth: $54.1B
Richest Individual: Eng-Meng Tsai ($6B)
The 25 billionaires with Taiwanese citizenship live in Taipei or China, like Tsai Eng-Meng who calls Shanghai home. The world’s richest Taiwanese person turned his father's small outfit, I Lan Foods Industrial, into snack giant Want Want China. The company, which he chairs, sells beverages and snack items ranging from rice crackers to spicy peanuts. Tsai increased his stake in Want Want in 2015. He also invests in hotels and financial services.
#17 (Tie) Australia
Billionaire Population: 25
Combined Net Worth: $61.7B
Richest Individual: Gina Rinehart ($8.8B)
Like in Taiwan, every Australian billionaire either made their own money or increased their inherited wealth. Gina Rinehart, Australia’s richest person, is a typical example. She took her late father's bankrupted estate and rebuilt it into something much larger. One large piece of her fortune comes from Hope Downs, a joint venture she has with Rio Tinto. The other is the massive Roy Hill project, a world-class iron ore mine in Western Australia.
#16 Sweden
Billionaire Population: 26
Combined Net Worth: $112B
Richest Individual: Stefan Persson ($20.8B)
Swedish billionaires derive their worth from iconic brands like H&M, IKEA and Minecraft. Stefan Persson is Sweden's richest person by way of global cheap-chic fashion retailer H&M (Hennes & Mauritz), where he owns a 28% stake and serves as chairman. His father, Erling Persson, founded the chain in 1947. In order to meet its goal of a 10% annual increase in new stores, H&M has to average one store opening a day.
#15 Japan
Billionaire Population: 27
Combined Net Worth: $85.4B
Richest Individual: Tadashi Yanai ($14.6B)
The majority of Japanese billionaires made their fortunes in the tech industry, in fields as diverse as smartphone games, robotics, and pachinko machines. Retailer Tadashi Yanai continues to drive the global expansion of his company, Fast Retailing, and in particular his core brand, Uniqlo, which has been expanding into American markets. Yanai plans to be the world's largest retailer by 2020, hoping to surpass Spain's Inditex, which owns Zara.
#14 Turkey
Billionaire Population: 30
Combined Net Worth: $45.4B
Richest Individual: Murat Ulker ($2.9B)
Turkey’s billionaires derive their wealth from industries as diverse as Chobani yoghurt and construction. The country’s richest person is Murat Ulker, who chairs Turkey's largest food company, Yildiz Holding. Ulker is looking to improve the group's outlook by uniting his global asset, including Ulker Biscuits, Demet's Candy, Godiva and United Biscuits into a new company called Pladis. The restructuring could be a prelude to an IPO.
#12 (Tie) South Korea
Billionaire Population: 31
Combined Net Worth: $75.1B
Richest Individual: Kun-Hee Lee ($9.6B)
Close to half of Forbes’ South Korean billionaires derive their net worth from food products or technology. The richest, Lee Kun-Hee, is chairman of Korea's largest conglomerate, Samsung Group. The company sells everything from textiles and construction to IT services and electronics. In May 2014, Lee suffered a heart attack at home and was hospitalized. Since then, there's been little information about his condition or Samsung's succession plan.
#12 (Tie) Brazil
Billionaire Population: 31
Combined Net Worth: $135.1B
Richest Individual: Jorge Paulo Lemann ($27.8B)
In keeping with Brazil’s fun-loving image, three of the five wealthiest Brazilians got rich off beer. Jorge Paulo Lemann is Brazil's richest man thanks to his stake in Anheuser-Busch InBev, the world's largest brewer, which he owns through private equity firm 3G Capital together with fellow billionaires and longtime partners Carlos Sicupira and Marcel Herrmann Telles.
#11 Switzerland
Billionaire Population: 32
Combined Net Worth: $91.6B
Richest Individual: Ernesto Bertarelli ($8.6B)
While Switzerland is known as a hub of international finance, only seven of its 32 billionaires get their wealth from banking. Ernesto Bertarelli inherited biotech giant Serono, maker of the multiple sclerosis drug Rebig. With his sister, Dona, he expanded the company to $2.4 billion in revenues before selling it to Merck for $9 billion in 2007. They co-chair the Bertarelli Foundation. It focuses on marine conservation and life sciences research.
#10 Canada
Billionaire Population: 33
Combined Net Worth: $112.4B
Richest Individual: David Thomson ($23.8B)
The self-made billionaires of Canada got wealthy from iconic companies like Uber, Lululemon and Cirque du Soleil. Canada’s richest individual is David Thomson, who with his family controls a media and publishing empire founded by David's grandfather, Roy Thomson. Their biggest holding: 58% of Thomson Reuters, where David serves as chairman. They also hold a stake in telecoms giant Bell Canada and own the Toronto-based Globe and Mail newspaper.
#9 France
Billionaire Population: 39
Combined Net Worth: $212B
Richest Individual: Liliane Bettencourt ($36.1B)
France leads the world in fashion, and its billionaires derive their wealth from companies like Chanel, LVMH and Hermes. It’s also home to three of the world’s five cheese billionaires. France’s richest person is the grand dame of L'Oréal, Liliane Bettencourt. She and her children own 33% of the cosmetics empire that her father, Eugene Schueller, founded in 1907, and she remains the richest woman in Europe.
#8 Italy
Billionaire Population: 43
Combined Net Worth: $150.8B
Richest Individual: Maria Franca Fissolo ($22.1B)
The names of our Italian billionaires are recognizable all over the world: Prada, Armani, Ferrari and Bulgari. The wealthiest is Maria Franca Fissolo, the widow of Michele Ferrero, who built Ferrero Group into one of the world's leading sweets companies. It’s best known for its iconic Nutella chocolate hazelnut spread, Kinder chocolates and Tic-Tac mints. Ferrero died on Valentine's Day in 2015, but the family business lives on.
#7 United Kingdom
Billionaire Population: 50
Combined Net Worth: $161.8B
Richest Individual: Hinduja family ($14.5B)
Half of British billionaires derive their wealth from either real estate, finance or fashion. The richest of them all are the four brothers who control the multinational conglomerate Hinduja Group, co-chaired by London-based siblings Srichand and Gopichand. Their newly launched Nxt Digital, an Indian digital-television distributor, is aiming for 10 million subscribers. The brothers are planning a big push in Africa with a $1 billion investment.
#6 Hong Kong
Billionaire Population: 63
Combined Net Worth: $240.2B
Richest Individual: Ka-Shing La ($27.1B)
Hong Kong’s billionaires largely owe their wealth to real estate, gambling and manufacturing. Hong Kong's richest person, Li Ka-shing, is one of the most influential tycoons in Asia with interests in everything from ports, utilities and telecom to real estate and retail; his companies employ 290,000 people. His rags-to-riches story is legendary. But Li also lost $6 billion last year, due partly to a big drop in share prices of oil giant Husky.
#5 Russia
Billionaire Population: 77
Combined Net Worth: $282.6B
Richest Individual: Leonid Mikhelson ($14.4B)
The energy and mining industries are well-represented among Russia’s billionaires. Leonid Mikhelson's fortune got a boost after Chinese state-owned Sinopec paid $1.3 billion in December for 10% of Sibur, the gas-processing and petrochemical company that he controls. He is also a key shareholder in natural gas producer Novatek. Mikhelson's father headed the largest pipeline construction trust in the Soviet Union, and Mikhelson began his career as foreman for a construction company building a gas pipeline in Russia's Tyumen region.
#4 India
Billionaire Population: 84
Combined Net Worth: $248.4B
Richest Individual: Mukesh Ambani ($19.3B)
India’s heirs and self-made billionaires derive their net worth from a spread of industries including fashion, healthcare, technology, real estate and finance. Mukesh Ambani retained his position as India's richest person despite shares of his oil and gas giant Reliance Industries taking a hit due to lower oil prices. The firm, which has $62.2 billion in revenues, is likely to resume buying crude oil from Iran after the lifting of sanctions.
#3 Germany
Billionaire Population: 120
Combined Net Worth: $469.1B
Richest Individual: Beate Heister & Karl Albrecht ($25.9B)
37 of Germany’s billionaires get their wealth from fashion and retail; 19 from healthcare; and 18 from manufacturing. The richest are Beate Heister and Karl Albrecht Jr., children of Karl Albrecht Sr., who co-founded Aldi supermarkets in 1946. The chain thrived on a no-frills, low-price strategy similar to Wal-Mart. Beate has never worked at Aldi Sud but sits on its advisory board. Karl Jr. has worked in different positions at the company.
#2 China
Billionaire Population: 251
Combined Net Worth: $593B
Richest Individual: Jianlin Wang ($28.7B)
Manufacturing, technology and real estate are the industries that made the most billionaires in China. The richest is Jianlin Wang, whose Dalian Wanda Group started as a commercial real estate developer. Companies controlled by Wang have spanned the globe in recent years. It now owns the organizer of Ironman Triathlons, U.S. film and TV production company Legendary Entertainment and movie theater chain AMC Entertainment Holdings.
#1 United States
Billionaire Population: 540
Combined Net Worth: $2.399T
Richest Individual: Bill Gates ($75B)
The USA has the most billionaires of any country in the world, and their primary sources of wealth are finance, technology and food. Bill Gates, its richest citizen, has built a reputation as a serious thinker about the world's problems, steering his foundation to tackle knotty issues like improving healthcare and the use of vaccines in developing nations. Gates owns just under 3% of Microsoft, which accounts for less than 20% of his fortune.
