There are 2,668 billionaires in the world, according to Forbes in its 36th annual ranking of the richest people on earth. They come from 75 countries or territories and have a collective wealth of $12.7 trillion. (These are the 25 richest countries in the world.)
To determine the countries with the most billionaires, 24/7 Wall St. reviewed the Forbes Richest People in the World for 2022, which contained details on 2,668 billionaires around the world. The number of billionaires, the aggregate wealth of all billionaires, and the identity of the richest billionaire in each country all come from the Forbes list. (Figures are for 2021.)
The U.S. has more billionaires than any other country, with 735 billionaires worth a total of $4.7 trillion. We also boast eight of the 10 wealthiest individuals in the world, including No. 1 Elon Musk. The flamboyant disrupter of transportation and space travel, who is now buying Twitter, tops the Forbes list for the first time.
By region, Asia-Pacific has the most billionaires with 1,088, and China has about half of them. The world’s most populous nation has the second highest billionaire population, with 539 worth $2 trillion in total.
The richest person in China, Zhong Shanshan, gained his wealth in the food and beverage sector. India added 26 billionaires to boost its total to 166, putting it in third place. Mukesh Ambani is the wealthiest person in India and the 10th richest in the world, amassing his wealth through holdings in petrochemicals, fossil fuels, telecommunications, and retail.
Germany has the most billionaires of any nation in Europe with 134 and is fourth on the list. Supermarket magnate Dieter Schwarz is the richest man in Germany. Russia is fifth with 83 billionaires – 34 fewer than in 2021. Following its invasion of Ukraine, Russia’s markets tanked, the ruble collapsed, and sanctions imposed by other nations impacted the wealth of Russian oligarchs. Vladimir Lisin, chairman of steel product maker NLMK Group, is Russia’s richest person, even though his wealth has fallen by about 30% since last year. (As a cautionary tale, these are 14 billionaires who went broke.)
Click here to see the countries with the most billionaires
Four countries – not on this list – had their first billionaires in this year’s Forbes accounting: Bulgaria, Estonia, Uruguay, and Barbados. You probably know the billionaire from Barbados – pop star Rihanna. Her stakes in the Fenty Beauty cosmetics line and the Savage X Fenty lingerie business helped land her in the billionaire’s club.
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30. Czechia
> Number of billionaires: 9
> Aggregate wealth: $49.0 billion
> Richest billionaire: Renata Kellnerova & family ($16.6 billion)
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29. Netherlands
> Number of billionaires: 11
> Aggregate wealth: $38.0 billion
> Richest billionaire: Charlene de Carvalho-Heineken & family ($15.2 billion)
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28. Austria
> Number of billionaires: 11
> Aggregate wealth: $61.7 billion
> Richest billionaire: Dietrich Mateschitz ($27.4 billion)
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27. Norway
> Number of billionaires: 13
> Aggregate wealth: $40.9 billion
> Richest billionaire: Andreas Halvorsen ($6.6 billion)
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26. Mexico
> Number of billionaires: 15
> Aggregate wealth: $160.9 billion
> Richest billionaire: Carlos Slim Helu & family ($81.2 billion)
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25. Malaysia
> Number of billionaires: 17
> Aggregate wealth: $63.1 billion
> Richest billionaire: Robert Kuok ($11.7 billion)
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24. Philippines
> Number of billionaires: 20
> Aggregate wealth: $46.2 billion
> Richest billionaire: Manuel Villar ($8.3 billion)
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23. Turkey
> Number of billionaires: 24
> Aggregate wealth: $40.8 billion
> Richest billionaire: Murat Ulker ($4.7 billion)
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22. Singapore
> Number of billionaires: 26
> Aggregate wealth: $106.7 billion
> Richest billionaire: Li Xiting ($17.6 billion)
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21. Spain
> Number of billionaires: 27
> Aggregate wealth: $116.0 billion
> Richest billionaire: Amancio Ortega ($59.6 billion)
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20. Thailand
> Number of billionaires: 28
> Aggregate wealth: $95.3 billion
> Richest billionaire: Dhanin Chearavanont ($13.5 billion)
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19. Israel
> Number of billionaires: 30
> Aggregate wealth: $112.6 billion
> Richest billionaire: Eyal Ofer ($15.4 billion)
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18. Indonesia
> Number of billionaires: 30
> Aggregate wealth: $115.1 billion
> Richest billionaire: R. Budi Hartono ($23.2 billion)
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17. Japan
> Number of billionaires: 40
> Aggregate wealth: $154.5 billion
> Richest billionaire: Tadashi Yanai & family ($26.1 billion)
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16. South Korea
> Number of billionaires: 41
> Aggregate wealth: $109.3 billion
> Richest billionaire: Kim Beom-su ($9.1 billion)
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15. Switzerland
> Number of billionaires: 41
> Aggregate wealth: $181.9 billion
> Richest billionaire: Guillaume Pousaz ($23.0 billion)
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14. France
> Number of billionaires: 43
> Aggregate wealth: $550.0 billion
> Richest billionaire: Bernard Arnault & family ($158.0 billion)
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13. Sweden
> Number of billionaires: 45
> Aggregate wealth: $165.7 billion
> Richest billionaire: Stefan Persson ($17.6 billion)
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12. Australia
> Number of billionaires: 46
> Aggregate wealth: $207.1 billion
> Richest billionaire: Gina Rinehart ($30.2 billion)
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11. United Kingdom
> Number of billionaires: 49
> Aggregate wealth: $199.1 billion
> Richest billionaire: James Ratcliffe ($16.3 billion)
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10. Taiwan
> Number of billionaires: 51
> Aggregate wealth: $150.9 billion
> Richest billionaire: Zhang Congyuan ($11.7 billion)
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9. Italy
> Number of billionaires: 52
> Aggregate wealth: $194.5 billion
> Richest billionaire: Giovanni Ferrero ($36.2 billion)
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8. Brazil
> Number of billionaires: 62
> Aggregate wealth: $186.7 billion
> Richest billionaire: Jorge Paulo Lemann & family ($15.4 billion)
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7. Canada
> Number of billionaires: 64
> Aggregate wealth: $307.9 billion
> Richest billionaire: Changpeng Zhao ($65.0 billion)
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6. Hong Kong
> Number of billionaires: 67
> Aggregate wealth: $383.4 billion
> Richest billionaire: Robin Zeng ($44.8 billion)
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5. Russia
> Number of billionaires: 83
> Aggregate wealth: $320.2 billion
> Richest billionaire: Vladimir Lisin ($18.4 billion)
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4. Germany
> Number of billionaires: 134
> Aggregate wealth: $608.0 billion
> Richest billionaire: Dieter Schwarz ($47.1 billion)
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3. India
> Number of billionaires: 166
> Aggregate wealth: $749.8 billion
> Richest billionaire: Mukesh Ambani ($90.7 billion)
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2. China
> Number of billionaires: 539
> Aggregate wealth: $1962.4 trillion
> Richest billionaire: Zhong Shanshan ($65.7 billion)
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1. United States
> Number of billionaires: 735
> Aggregate wealth: $4701.1 trillion
> Richest billionaire: Elon Musk ($219.0 billion)
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