Who is the richest person in the world? Top 10 rich list, net worth ranked - from Bernard Arnault to Elon Musk

Forbes Magazine has announced its annual rich list, with tech tycoons including Elon Musk, Jeff Bezos and Bill Gates all ranking highly.

However, there is a new name in the top spot, with French billionaire Bernard Arnault & Family knocking the Tesla CEO off the top spot of Forbes Real-Time Billionaires list.

Musk has been making headlines after completing the sale for the social media platform Twitter. Musk has made sweeping changes, firing key staff members and changing the policy on blue tick verification.

With further uncertainty expected in 2023, we’ve taken a look at who the richest people in the world are now, their net worth and how they made their fortune.

Bernard Arnault & family - $207.7 billion

The Bernard Arnault Family are currently the richest people in the world, with a net worth of $207.7 billion. The 73-year old French billionaire oversees 70 of the world’s most famous fashion and beauty brands including Louis Vuitton, Tiffany & Co and Sephora.

Arnault came from a wealthy background, with his father owning a successful construction business. He broke into the fashion industry in 1985 after using $15 million from his father’s business to buy Christian Dior. Currently based in Paris, France, Arnault is married to concert pianist Helene Mercier. The couple have five children, with four of them - Frédéric, Delphine, Antoine and Alexandre, working in the family business.

Elon Musk - $148.4 billion

Elon Musk now ranks as the second richest person in the world following a turbulent year in 2022. The Tesla and SpaceX CEO still has an eye-watering net worth of $148.4 billion.

Born in South Africa, he grew up in Pretoria before moving to America to study at the University of Pennsylvania. His first software startup, Zip2 was bought in 1999 for $307 million and he went on to co-found Paypal, which sold to eBay in 2002 for $2.5 billion. Musk founded SpaceX in 2002 and runs electric vehicle maker Tesla, of which he is a shareholder.

Musk has been married twice and allegedly has eight children. His last public relationship was with singer Grimes, with whom he has two children, a son named, X Æ A-12 and a daughter called Exa Dark Sideræl, he also reportedly had twins with his work colleague Shivon Zilis.

In April 2022, he bought the social media network Twitter for $44 billion, only to then pull out of the sale in July. As of 28 October however, the deal was finalised, with the Tesla CEO taking to Twitter to tell his 110 million followers “the bird is freed”. Since coming into ownership he has made sweeping changes, firing staff members and causing chaos after he allowed accounts to buy the blue tick verification.

In January 2023 Musk promised he will bring new navigational features to the social media platform.

Gautam Adani - $121.7 billion

Gautam Adani is the chair of the Adani business group which has an impressive annual revenue of $21 billion alone. He controls Mundra Port, the largest in India and also has a 74% stake in Mumbai International Airport.

The 60-year-old, who was born into a Jain family in India, is married to Priti Adani with the couple having two sons, Karan and Jeet. In 1998, Adani and a business colleague Shantilal Patel were allegedly held hostage in exchange for a ransom, it’s reported that the money was never paid and the two former criminals Fazl-ur-Rehman and Bhogilal Darji accused of the crime were acquitted in 2018 after Adnani and Patel did not show up for court.

Adani is an ally of Indian president Narendra Modi and was recently criticised after it was announced he would acquire a 65% stake in the independent Indian news channel NDTV.

Jeff Bezos - $116.8 billion

Jeff Bezos is the fourth richest person in the world, with a net worth of $112.6 billion. Bezos is originally from Albuquerque, New Mexico and famously started Amazon from a garage in his home. The company began by selling books, but by the early 2000s it had expanded offering things from electronics to furniture and toiletries.

Bezos owns several apartments in New York City, homes in Washington, California and Washington DC and a ranch in Texas which is the private base for his company Blue Origin which ferried tourists into space in 2021. Bezos divorced from his wife MacKenzie in 2019 after 25-yeas of marriage, announcing his new relationship with Lauren Sanchez in the same year.

His company Amazon has been called into question due to its tax avoidance, with the organisation Ethical Consumer calling for an Amazon boycott. There have also been concerns about treatment of staff: in April 2022, warehouse employees in Staten Island, New York, successfully voted in favour of unionising. Union leader Chris Smalls said: “We want to thank Jeff Bezos for going to space because while he was up there we were signing people up.”

Larry Ellison - $106.7 billion

Lawrence Joseph is the co-founder, executive chairman, chief technology officer and former chief executive officer of the American technology company Oracle Corporation. Under his supervision the company grew to become the largest supplier of data based software in America, making the businessman a billionaire.

He stepped down as CEO for Oracle in 2014, but has stayed on in the company as the executive chairman, chief technology officer.

Ellison is friends with Musk, reported by the Business Insider, he had pledged $1billion towards Musk’s deal with Twitter.

Bill Gates - $101.8 billion

Bill Gates is no longer in the top 5 richest people in the world, with the Tech mogul currently dropping to seventh place. In July 2022 he took to Twitter to share that he would be donating his wealth to his foundation, with the plan to “move down and eventually off of the list of the world’s richest people.” It definitely seems like he has gotten his wish.

Gates made his fortune through the software company Microsoft, which he co-founded with Paul Allen in 1975. He was married to Melinda Gates for 27-years until their divorce in 2021. The pair formed the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, of which they still co-chair together. The foundation supports global health initiatives around the world, including improving global sanitation and working to eradicate diseases such as Malaria and Aids.

Who are the Top 10 richest people in the world?

According to Forbes Magazine‘s Real-Time Billionaires list, the top 10 richest people in the world are:

1. Bernard Arnault & Family - $207.7 billion
2. Elon Musk - $148.4 billion
3. Gautam Adani - $127.1 billion
4. Jeff Bezos - $116.8 billion
5. Larry Ellison - $106.7 billion
6. Warren Buffet - $106.1 billion
7. Bill Gates - $101.8 billion
8. Carlos Slim Helu & Family - $91.1 billion
9. Mukesh Ambani - $88.6 billion
10. Francoise Bettencourt Meyers & Family - $81.1 billion