8 Billionaires Own the Same Amount of Wealth as the Poorest 3.6 Billion People
That statistic comes from the charity Oxfam, which will present its report on widening inequality at the World Economic Forum annual summit, which kicks off on January 17 in Davos, Switzerland. While the event is attended by the world’s top business executives, policy makers and academics, the forum often focuses on issues touching on economic justice, such as income inequality. This year’s forum theme, for instance, is “responsive and responsible leadership.”
Oxfam said it didn’t name the richest 8 billionaires in its report because its goal is to call attention to the political and economic mechanics that are creating widening inequality. Still, the 8 billionaires are those at the top of the Forbes’ billionaire list, many of whom have pledged to spend large portions of their fortunes on charity.
- Microsoft founder Bill Gates, $75 billion
- Spanish retail magnate Amancio Ortega, $67 billion
- American investor Warren Buffett, $60.8 billion
- Mexican investor Carlos Slim Helu, $50 billion
- Amazon.com founder Jeff Bezos, $45.2 billion
- Facebook founder Mark Zuckerberg, $44.6 billion
- Oracle founder Larry Ellison, $43.6 billion
- Media mogul Michael Bloomberg, $40 billion
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