Richest women in the world 2024:L'Oréal’s Francoise Bettencourt Meyers, Alice Walton and Julia Koch

Here come the women! The richest men in the world 2024 include Elon Musk, Jeff Bezos and Mark Zuckerberg, but what about the richest women? For those of you who are unfamiliar with Francoise Bettencourt Meyers, she is not only the granddaughter of the founder of beauty and hair company L'Oréal, but is also the richest woman in the world. With a fortune of $96.8 billion, L'Oréal’s brands include Lancôme, Kiehl’s,  La Roche-Posay and Maybelline. Supermodel Kendall Jenner was named as the new face of L’Oréal Paris last year.

According to Forbes, “Bettencourt Meyers’ rise to the world’s richest woman did not come without turmoil – most notably a French scandal around a sensational trial involving billions of dollars that led to a publicly turbulent mother-daughter rift. In 2007, Bettencourt Meyers sued François Marie Banier—a long-time family friend and celebrity photographer—of allegedly swindling more than $1 billion in art, cash, real estate and other gifts from her mother. He was convicted, sentenced to three years in jail and forced to pay around $150 million in damages. Both sentences were reversed a few years later.”

Liliane Bettencourt, the mother of Francoise Bettencourt Meyers, died at the age of 94 in 2017, which led Francoise to becoming the heiress of L'Oréal. She has two sons, Jean-Victor and Nicolas, who are also on the board of the company. 

Alice Walton is the chairman of Crystal Bridges Museum of American Art and is the only daughter of Walmart founder Sam Walton. She has a fortune of $61.3bn. In October 2023, she took back the title as the richest woman in America and surpassed Julia Koch. After graduating in economics and finance from Trinity University in San Antonio, Texas, Walton worked as both a stockbroker and an equity analyst before launching an investment bank. According to Forbes, “Her only role at Walmart was a brief stint as a buyer of children’s clothes after graduating from college.” 

In 2005, Alice founded Crystal Bridges Museum of American Art as a non-profit charitable organisation. According to its website: “Alice’s interest in art began in her childhood when she discovered watercolours. She and her mother often painted with watercolours on family camping trips or on hikes in the Ozarks.”

Julia Koch has a fortune of $59.3bn. When her husband David died in August 2019, Julia and her three children inherited a 42 per cent stake in Koch Industries. It was Fred C. Koch who started Koch Industries, when he co founded the Wood River Oil and Refining Company. Julia’s husband David was executive vice president of the company until a year before he died. 

Julia Koch has worked as an assistant to fashion designer Adolfo whose high-profile clients included former First Lady Nancy Reagan. In July 2023, she reportedly sold her and her late husband's Manhattan townhouse for $41 million.