Africa’s richest man, Nigeria’s Aliko Dangote, fell sharply in ranking in the new Forbes world’s richest list.
Dangote’s bulging networth of $25 billion last year, fell by $10.3 billion, making him the biggest loser among the world billionaires, his wealth seriously affected by the downturn in the Nigerian stock market, the depreciation of the Nigerian currency and shrinking demand for cement, his largest asset.
Though now ranked 67th in the world, Dangote retains the title of Africa’s richest man. His real time net worth is however put at $15.7 billion, which makes him 59th richest man in the world.
He became Africa’s richest man through cement manufacturing and commodities such as flour and sugar.
Mike Adenuga, the telecom and oil mogul was ranked second in Nigeria, with his net worth estimated at $4billion.
Folorunso Alakija was ranked third with wealth estimated at $1.9 billion while Femi Otedola came in fourth with a wealth of $1billion.
Philanthropist Bill Gates stands atop Forbes magazine’s annual list of the world’s richest people, as Facebook Inc’s Mark Zuckerberg joined the top 20 and basketball star Michael Jordan plowed new air by making the list for the first time.
Gates’ net worth rose to $79.2 billion from $76 billion a year earlier, putting the Microsoft Corp co-founder at the top for the 16th year in the last 21, Forbes said on Monday.
Mexico telecommunications mogul Carlos Slim Helu ranked second, worth $77.1 billion, while Berkshire Hathaway Inc chief Warren Buffett was third, at $72.7 billion.
Amancio Ortega, the Spanish founder of Inditex SA, which includes clothing retailer Zara, was fourth at $64.5 billion, while Oracle Corp Chairman Larry Ellison was fifth at $54.3 billion.
Buffett’s fortune grew $14.5 billion from a year earlier, more than anyone’s else, despite his having donated $2.8 billion to several charities last July.
Forbes identified a record 1,826 billionaires, up from 1,645 last year, worth a combined $7.05 trillion.
Of the record 197 women, the highest-ranked was Wal-Mart Stores Inc heiress Christy Walton, who was eighth at $41.7 billion.
France’s Liliane Bettencourt, who got much of her wealth from cosmetics company L’Oreal SA, was 10th at $40.1 billion.
Zuckerberg, 30, rose to 16th place from 21st last year, as his net worth grew to $34.8 billion.
The youngest billionaires were Evan Spiegel, 24, and Bobby Murphy, 25, who co-founded mobile messaging app Snapchat, and are each worth $1.5 billion.
Meanwhile, Jordan ranked 1,741st with a $1 billion net worth. The 52-year-old is majority owner of the Charlotte Hornets basketball team, but is better known for his Hall of Fame playing days with the Chicago Bulls and endorsement contract with Nike Inc, which makes Air Jordan shoes.
Jordan’s business manager did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
The United States had the most billionaires, with 536, followed by China at 213, Germany at 103 and India at 90.
Russia, which has struggled with currency and oil market turmoil, saw its collection of billionaires fall to 88 from 111, Forbes said.
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