Famous people in business. Biographies of the richest and most successful people in the world - success stories, photos, quotes and sayings
Today I decided to tell you the stories of billionaires who did not give up and found their place in life: billionaires without education, the youngest billionaires, billionaires after 40
We all want to be successful, but many of us need those who, with their experience and example, can inspire a desire to reach the same heights. Sometimes in moments when they give up, when it seems that nothing will work out and everything is lost, when patience and dedication ends, it is enough to look at those who were in the same situation, but did not give up and still managed to realize their dream and find your place in life. In this review, you will learn about the lives of billionaires who were able to achieve their goals without receiving an education, who were able to earn capital only after 40 years, about the youngest billionaires and philanthropists.
Every person dreams of achieving success and finding their place in life, but not everyone succeeds. Someone underestimates the risks and loses money, someone lacks patience, someone chooses the wrong path. There are many reasons for failure, but there is one interesting fact: many people tend to blame circumstances and others for their failures, but not themselves. But it is the analysis of your own mistakes that is the key to success. Examples of those who were able to achieve success are clear evidence of this.
ten billionaires without higher education;
the ten youngest entrepreneur-investors who made a billion on their own;
“It's Never Too Late to Start” - investors who have become billionaires after 40 years;
the most generous philanthropic investors.
Each of them deserves special attention and each of them is unique in its own way.
Part I - Ten Non-College Billionaires
Each of the participants in this rating has its own special unique destiny. Someone thought that studying was boring and dreamed of starting their own business. Someone had a difficult, penniless childhood and had to forget about education in principle. Someone dropped out of college in the middle of the path, and someone did not even finish school (not to mention higher education). According to statistics, about 37% of billionaires have not graduated from university, about 24% do not have any educational documents at all. However, this did not prevent them from realizing their dream and breaking into the TOP of the richest people in the world. Agree good example to follow.
1. Joe Lewis (born 1937) ($ 5 billion).
Is Lewis a bummer? Interest Ask. After all, at the age of 15, he dropped out of school, preferring the family business. At that time, his father was engaged in catering and Lewis began to help him. When the business completely passed into his hands, there was no longer any point in getting an education - he already had quite good practical entrepreneurial experience. Later he will sell the business and engage in foreign exchange transactions and investments. And he will even be forced to flee from tax prosecution in the Bahamas. Today he owns over 120 restaurants and the Tottenham Hotspur Football Club. The billionaire is also known for partnering with George Soros in the attack on the Bank of England.
2. Richard Branson (b. 1950) ($ 5.1 billion).
Until the age of 8, the most famous billionaire in Great Britain could neither read nor write, suffering from dyslexia. Already in childhood, Branson showed by all his actions that he was not eager to learn. Having almost finished his studies, at the age of 16 he dropped out of school. The headmaster of the school then looked into the water: "You will either become a rich man or go to prison." After dropping out of school, he founds his first business, Student magazine. To keep readers interested, he began publishing free articles by John Lennon, Mick Jagger and other stars in it. Then he opened a record company, calling it Virgin. Today Virgin is a brand of about 400 companies different profilefrom air travel and telecommunications to space tourism and video game creation.
By the way, here it would be worth mentioning another rich resident of Great Britain, Roman Abramovich, with a fortune of about 9 billion pounds sterling. He also does not have a higher education due to a lack of desire to study. But he owes his fortune more to connections with Russian oligarchs and politicians, as well as to gray business schemes.
3. Paul Allen (born 1953) (fortune 20.1 billion US dollars).
Allen was born into a family of a teacher and a military man and already with primary school became interested in technology and electronics. He began to study programming from the 6th grade and later this will become a decisive factor - after studying for 2 years at the University of Washington, he leaves the university and becomes one of the co-founders of Microsoft.
He began to show his first entrepreneurial abilities at the age of 12. Working part time on vacation at the post office, he realized that new residents of the area were more willing to subscribe to newspapers, after which he created a kind of network of informants - friends who informed him about new arrivals. After entering the University of Texas, he planned to become a doctor, but dropped out and founded a small computer assembly company. Today, the Dell corporation he created is one of the largest in the world in this segment.
5. Li Kashin (born 1928) (US $ 33 billion).
In March 2018, the 89-year-old billionaire, one of the richest people in Asia, announced that he was going out of business, sort of ending his career. And he has something to be proud of. Born into a poor teacher's family, at the age of 14, he lost his father to tuberculosis and was forced to drop out of school. Working at a factory for the production of plastic flowers, in 7 years he was able to accumulate money, which was enough to open a similar small production. His success was brought about by deals with real estate that has fallen in price against the backdrop of political instability in Hong Kong. Today, the billionaire's two major companies account for about 15% of the Hong Kong stock market capitalization. Kashin also invests in logistics, retail, biotechnology, mechanical engineering, telecommunications.
6. Francois Pinault (born 1936) ($ 33.8 billion).
All that the French billionaire has from his education documents is a driver's license. He did not like studying since childhood, moreover, he was forced to endure the bullying of his classmates due to his low origin. His father was engaged in the timber trade, the same idea and adopted Pino. At the age of 27, having successfully married, he founded his first company (although the marriage did not last long). Then he meets Jacques Chirac, who will later help him. In addition to wood and papermaking, Pino was involved in the supply of cars and medicines to Africa. Today he also owns the Christie's auction house and the Rennes football club.
7. Larry Ellison (born 1944) (57.4 billion US dollars).
Allison tried twice to get higher education, both times without success. At first, he was forced to leave the University of Illinois after 2 years of study. Then he studied at the University of Chicago for a semester. Both times he was forced to quit the university. However, this did not stop him from founding a software and database development company, which we know today as Oracle.
8. Mark Zuckerberg (born 1984) ($ 77.6 billion).
After the advent of the Internet era in the early 2000s, hundreds of tech startups began to appear. True, except for a beautiful cover, they could not offer anything and in 2000 most of them ceased to exist after the collapse of the dotcoms. This did not stop Zuckerberg. The idea of \u200b\u200bcreating a social network has become a kind of dream of the future billionaire. And even if for the sake of its implementation it was necessary to leave Harvard University, after 2 years the network became available for every Internet user.
9. Amancio Ortega (born 1936) (US $ 96.4 billion).
The childhood of the future billionaire was not easy. Father worked for railroad, the mother was a servant and the family was sorely lacking money. At 13, Ortega was forced to say goodbye to school and look for work. After settling down as a messenger in a shirt store, he gradually began to adopt the experience of sewing and selling clothes. Later, he would open a factory for sewing gowns and lingerie, but almost burned out after a large customer refused the batch of goods. Ortega would then decide to sell clothes in his own chain of stores, creating what we know today under the Zara brand. Today, Amancio also invests in real estate.
10. Bill Gates (born 1955) (93.3 billion US dollars).
Like Paul Allen, Bill chose to give up his studies at Harvard University in order to devote himself entirely to Microsoft. Some subjects were definitely not given to him and after 2 years he was expelled from the university. And as it turned out, it was only for the best.
It would also be worth adding to this list a billionaire from the United States of Armenian origin Kirk Kerkonyan (1917-2015). Born into a family of immigrants, after the 8th grade he was forced to leave school and become a car mechanic. During the war, he ferried bombers from Canada to the British Isles, earning start-up capital. The first big business was the sale of aircraft and the opening of charter flights, which at that time were rare.
Part II - “It's Never Too Late to Start” - Investors Who Become Billionaires After 40 Years
We continue our motivating rating with a list of people who earned their first billion after 40 years. Not everything is given at once, often it is patience, perseverance and dedication that bring the very result that turns out to be almost the meaning of life. Someone from today's rating only by the age of 40 found his place in life, having caught a wave of success. And someone persistently built a business empire for more than half of their lives, systematically bringing ideas to life. The example of these people shows that it is never too late to find yourself and start doing what you love.
1. Ray Kroc (1902-1984).
The father of the future billionaire died early enough, according to one of the versions, not having experienced a nervous shock after bankruptcy during the Great Depression. And Ray himself hardly thought he would become famous. By the time he was 50, he had diabetes and arthritis, his thyroid and gallbladder had been partially removed, and his job as a traveling salesman (selling paper cups and mixers) did not bode well. In 1952, he meets two brothers who run a fast-food restaurant and gets the idea to develop this direction. In 1955, he opens the first McDonald’s restaurant, in 1961 he completely buys out the rights to it and creates a whole chain.
2. Henry Ford (1863-1947).
The company of the same name founded by him at the dawn of the automotive industry produced the cheapest cars. Ford was one of the first to launch an assembly line at its plant in 1913, becoming an innovator in the industry. But it all started hard. In 1879, Ford proposed a car project that was never built. In 1903, a copyright infringement lawsuit was initiated against Ford, the proceedings in which lasted 8 years, but ended in victory for Ford. It wasn't until 1908 that the company had success with the release of the Ford T model.
3. Michael Bloomberg (born 1942).
At 24, the future billionaire and mayor of New York gets to work at Solomon Brothers, where he worked as a trader for 15 years. After the company acquired a new owner, he was laid off, but did not give up. In 1981, he founded the Bloomberg news agency, which analyzed the state of financial markets online. The agency's trick was in use computer technology, about which few people had heard then, which allowed us to occupy a niche in this sector.
4. Sam Walton (1918-1982).
Walton hardly suspected that he would be engaged in business. Until 1942, he worked in small positions: he was engaged in the sale of magazine mailing, raises rabbits for sale, works as a manager. In 1942, he enlisted in the US Army and after the end of the war he understood that he needed to live somehow, and the world system had already fundamentally changed. He tries his hand at retail, renting a store in a small town. Here he begins to apply his own sales technologies: direct wholesale (without intermediaries) purchase of goods, promotional discounts, work on weekends. In 1962, Walton opened his first store at the age of 44. In 1979 there were already more than 220 stores and today this chain is known to us under the name Wal-Mart.
5. Reed Hoffman (born 1967).
He dreamed of the Internet for a long time and even at its first appearance created SicialNet.com at the age of 30 - an analogue, a prototype of social networks, a dating site. The project turned out to be unprofitable, and in 1999 Hoffman left it. But he didn't stop. Until 2002, he worked at PayPal, before the eBay takeover as a director. Only in 2002 he was able to realize his idea of \u200b\u200ba social network, literally 2 years ahead of Mark Zuckerberg, but later became one of the investors in Facebook in its early stages of development. Today we know this project as one of the first business social networks LinkedIn.
6. George Soros (born 1930).
You can criticize this person for as long as you like, but this does not diminish the fact that he was able to achieve a lot. And in what way (remember the same attack on the Bank of England) - the second question. George got into the investment sphere relatively late - at the age of 26, but even then he was able to offer an interesting idea of \u200b\u200bearning money on international arbitration. Only at the age of 39 does Soros become a fund manager, and only in 1973 he created his own fund, the Quantum Fund. Today he is one of the richest people in the world.
7. "Colonel" Garland Sanders (1890-1980).
As a child, this man had everything, but he chose to become a volunteer in the army. Until the age of 40, Sanders worked in many fields: a fireman on a railroad, a farmer, a miner. It was only at the age of 40 that he began to cook chicken dishes, which he sold to those who stopped at his local gas station. A unique recipe that allows you to cook chicken faster than in a skillet becomes Sanders' ticket to the big financial world. In 1950, he begins to shape the famous image: an aristocratic white suit, signature mustache and goatee. This image will become the face of his company KFC, which was waiting for serious tests and which it passed with honor.
8. Momofuku Ando (1910-2007).
According to one of the versions, in 2000 a survey was conducted in Japan: respondents were asked to name the main Japanese invention of the 20th century. Oddly enough, but the 1st place in the poll took ... Instant noodles! And it was Ando who, at the age of 48, was able to offer the technology of its production.
9. Amancio Ortega (born 1936).
The billionaire who had already participated in the last rating earned his first big capital only after 40 years. His childhood was difficult, so it was not easy to find start-up capital. Being engaged in the production of knitwear, Amancio had no competitive advantages and therefore could not increase production. His first factory appeared when he was 37 years old (in 1972). And only in 1975, the creation of his own sales network brought him success, which at that time was an innovation.
10. Mary Catherine Wagner (Ash) (1918-2001).
One of the few women entrepreneurs who have been able to build an entire business empire. In 1939 she becomes Sales Manager ( sales representative), seeking to increase sales of household goods through presentations. At 45, tired of the hired labor, she starts her own business buying a recipe for skin care lotions. Her customer-centric business philosophy, sample idea, and interesting marketing techniques allow the business to grow into an entire corporation. Today Mary Kay has more than 200 cosmetic products and more than 1200 people in the company's headquarters alone.
Part III - Ten Youngest Entrepreneurs-Investors Who Made a Billion on Their Own
Many billionaires have become such thanks to their parents, who left them money by will or gave them a share in the business. These people basically continue the business started by their parents with rare exceptions (for example, Tom Persson, who chose an acting career, or DJ Julio Mario Santo Domingo III). But there are also those who managed to earn their first billion on their own before the age of 40. And their experience deserves respect.
Back in 2015, Theranos was valued at $ 4.5 billion. USA. Elizabeth Holmes was 31 at the time. An inspiration, she was involved in drug development. It is not known how long her company would have continued to exist, if not for an unfortunate incident, as a result of which it turned out that most of the test results are lies. The SEC immediately removed Holmes from management, and Theranos is now virtually on the verge of bankruptcy. The rest of the participants in our rating are more successful.
1. John Collison (28 years old, $ 1.1 billion).
"Irish genius" - this is how Collison is called, who at the age of 17 earned $ 5 million. USA on the sale of Auctomatic, which develops tools for eBay. In 2010, with the support of Elon Musk and Peter Thiel, he founds Stripe, a company that develops solutions for receiving and processing electronic transactions. In 2016, Collison was named the world's youngest billionaire to earn a billion dollars. USA itself.
2. Bobby Murphy (30 years old, $ 3 billion).
Another young billionaire who followed the path of a technological breakthrough. Having gained experience while studying at the university in relation to creating small projects, he, together with Evan Spiegel (worth about US $ 2.1 billion), creates the Snapchat messenger. It is intended for the exchange of photo and video information, but its trick is that the information is available to the recipient for a short time, after which it is deleted automatically. The idea quickly found a response.
3. Drew Houston (35, $ \u200b\u200b3.2 billion).
And again a billionaire becomes a person who, at the peak of the popularity of platforms, services and applications, creates a unique product that instantly becomes in demand. In 2007, Houston developed Dropbox, a data storage and processing workspace that helps you organize your work and quickly find the files you need.
4. Nathan Blecharzik (33), Joe Gebbia (36) and Brian Chesky (36) - $ 3.8 billion USA for everyone.
But these guys can be safely called the exception of this rating. In 2008, they offered the world a platform for connecting renters and landlords around the world, Airbnb. The idea was immediately appreciated by travelers and those who are forced to urgently look for housing in other cities and countries for work. For 10 years, billionaires have attracted about 3.4 billion dollars. US investments, during the same time the site was visited by about 150 million people, about 30 million used its services, the database contains about 1.5 million proposals of houses, apartments for both long-term and short-term rent.
5. Jack Dorsey (41, $ 4.8 billion).
The idea of \u200b\u200bcreating Twitter came to him while studying at the Missouri University of Science and Technology. While working as a programmer in the dispatch service, he realized the need for instant messaging. In 2000, Dorsey created a platform for sending couriers and taxis over the Internet. And in 2008, its main service, Twitter, was launched. It is noteworthy that initially Dorsey dreamed of launching his own jeans line and in his youth was considered an irresponsible and frivolous person.
6. Robert Pera (40 years old, $ 5.1 billion).
Comparing Apple to his ambition, Pera said Apple is a great company, but he would like to do better faster. His corporate background allowed him to quickly understand the future of wireless technology. In 2009, the sale of his model of autonomous systems for organizing wireless communications begins. Today his company Ubiquiti is one of the leaders in the production of wireless equipment, which is distinguished by its approach to organizing the process of selling goods. Robert's goal is to achieve the same success that Cisco and Huawei have achieved.
7. Travis Kalanick (41 years old, $ 6.3 billion).
Donating his studies, in 1998 Kalanick creates a file hosting service called Scour. In 2000, under pressure from lawsuits for copyright infringement, he declared the project bankrupt. In 2001, he makes a second attempt to create a peer-to-peer file-sharing network, which he successfully sells in 2007. In 2009, he creates the third major project - Uber, which brings him fame. True, due to a series of internal conflicts in 2017, Kalanik was forced to leave his post of leader, but the task has already been completed: he is a billionaire.
8. Yang Kum (42 years old, $ 7.5 billion).
The future billionaire was born in Kiev and emigrated with his parents to the United States in 1992. He never graduated from university, preferring to work at Yahoo, where he worked from 2000 to 2007. In 2009, he creates one of the most popular instant messengers WhatsApp, which for 19 billion dollars. USA in 2014 buys Facebook. Until April 2018, Yang Kum continued to develop the messenger, but after that he was forced to leave due to disagreements with the management.
9. Dustin Moskowitz (34, $ 15.6 billion).
The fortune brought him participation in the development of the social network Facebook, where until 2008 he played the role of the second person. The desire to create his own working project pushed him to leave Facebook (albeit retaining a small share of the shares) and create Asana, a company operating in the technology and innovation market (creating applications for project management in small companies).
10. Mark Zuckerberg (34, $ 77.6 billion).
This man was already briefly discussed in the last article. Having relied on the development of social networks and sacrificing his studies for this, Zuckerberg was right. Although Facebook is in a fever in 2018 and competitors are on their heels, Mark remains a billionaire.
Part IV - The Most Generous Investor Philanthropists
What does a person need who has everything he wants? What does a person who already have billions, real estate, yachts, islands and even free time need? For people managing their billion-dollar fortune, it does not fundamentally matter whether they have 5 billion more or less, they need fame, recognition and respect. Each person wants people to remember his good deeds, each person wants to be useful to society.
1. Gordon and Betty Moore (289 million US dollars).
The Intel co-founder and his wife have been supporting various areas of science for several years, investing approximately the same amount annually (adjusted for inflation) for more than 15 years. In terms of the total amount of donations, the Moore couple is in the TOP-10 of the most generous investors in the world. Most of the money is allocated for science, security environment, training. Also at their expense, the largest telescope in the world is being built.
2. James Simons (US $ 293 million).
Mathematician, academician, trader who made money from managing hedge funds - in his 80s, he continues to invest in educational and medical projects in different countries. He rarely gets to the TOP, giving preference to individual interesting projects.
3. Paul Allen (341 million US dollars).
Microsoft co-founder has been in the world's TOP philanthropists since 2011. The priority area of \u200b\u200bfunding is research and, above all, neurology. He created the Institute for the Study of the Brain, which invested about $ 500 million. USA only at the time of creation.
4. Walton family (454 million US dollars).
The family of the Wal-Mart founder chose to choose a narrow funding profile. In 2011, thanks to them, a museum of American art appeared, where about $ 1.3 billion was invested at the start. USA.
5. Charles (Chuck) Feeney(482 million US dollars).
"Billionaire without a billion" - so called the founder of Duty Free Shoppers, one of the few who donated money to charity during his lifetime. He continues to receive passive income, but immediately gives it away. According to him, he only needs as much money as he can spend. To select objects of charity, he travels around the world, personally getting to know each project that requires a grant.
6. George Soros (531 million US dollars).
His Open Society Foundation is mainly involved in supporting education, giving grants to scientists, students, researchers. Another direction of the fund is financing organizations that defend the rights of people. Soros is often criticized for supporting the media, hiding behind the protection of freedom of speech and transparency, but in fact buying them.
7. Michael Bloomberg (600 million US dollars).
The former New York City mayor and news agency owner has donated money to over 850 organizations with a focus on health and environmental projects.
8. Bill and Melinda Gates (2.142 billion US dollars).
In 1999, thanks to Gates, a charitable foundation appeared, which at an early stage supported various kinds of technological developments (platforms, startups). Later, the fund will finance medical developments, help third world countries cope with hunger (humanitarian aid), etc. In 2010, together with Buffett, he created a kind of "Oath of Giving" club, whose members pledge to donate at least 50% of their money to charity.
9. Warren Buffett (2.861 billion US dollars).
Has friendships and partnerships with the Gates family, supporting their foundation. Has already transferred more than $ 30 billion. USA and wrote a will in which he promised to give 99% of his fortune to charities.
Interesting fact. Not all billionaires and millionaires are eager to join the "Oath of Giving", not everyone wants to part with their money. Mark Zuckerberg and Carlos Slim were also periodically included in the rating of the most generous philanthropists, but almost every year the list of the most generous billionaires does not change.
In conclusion, I want to say a well-known truth: millionaires and billionaires are not born - they become. So go for it :)
While it won't be easy to get to the top of Olympus without an entrepreneurial streak, determination, flexibility, and networking skills remain decisive factors. It happens that it takes more than a dozen years to find your place in life. But what one person started, his children can continue. Family business grows into huge corporations over time, but there is another way. It is enough to be a few steps ahead: see promising directions, not be afraid to take risks within reasonable limits and be able to find something that will be interesting to people. I sincerely wish you to find your place in life, to find your favorite pastime that would bring you profit. And if you've already made some progress, share your experience in the comments!
In this section, we have collected biographies of the richest and successful people the world. The goal is to understand what helped them earn millions and billions of dollars, what skills and abilities they possess, what qualities they develop in themselves and what values \u200b\u200bthey are guided by.
As one of them said, to become a millionaire, you must first become a millionaire personality. And we add on our own that in order to become a person in a million, you need to study the stories of successful personalities, try to get into their heads and learn to think like them. We hope our materials will help you with this. We wrote them primarily for ourselves.
The section is constantly updated, so bookmark this page or subscribe to the site news to learn about new biographies.
Bill Gates is the legendary founder of the world's most popular operating system, Windows. He is the richest man on the planet for over a decade, a charismatic business leader, innovator, knight of Great Britain and father of three. What events from Gates's biography and qualities of his character helped him become who he is?
Warren Buffett is the genius of the financial world, the most successful and consummate investor in the world, who is also one of the richest people on the planet. Do you want to know the secrets of his success?
Steve Jobs, co-founder of "", as well as several other companies, including animation studio Pixar, an innovative businessman who gave the world many interesting, intelligent toys such as iPod, iPhone, iPad, Mac, etc.
Henry Ford
Ray Kroc is an American entrepreneur, founder of McDonald's, a fast food restaurant chain. For the businessman's contribution to the formation and development of the catering industry, Time magazine in 1998 included him in the TOP-100 of the most significant people of the twentieth century.
Thomas Edison is a famous American inventor and businessman, co-founder of General Electric Corporation. During its professional activityThomas has received 1,093 patents at home and about 3,000 outside the United States. He improved the telegraph and telephone, designed a phonograph. Thanks to his persistence, millions of incandescent bulbs have been lit up in the world.
Coco Chanel is an outstanding female fashion designer, the founder of the Fashion House, who has proven that elegance is impossible without convenience. Her designer fantasies include a little black dress, a women's trouser suit, a handbag on a chain and other signature items that create a sophisticated style.
Walt Disney is a legendary American artist, producer and director. The creator of the first musical and full-length cartoons in the history of cinema, has released about 700 cartoons, won 29 Oscars and 4 Emmy awards, was awarded honorary degrees from Yale and Harvard Universities, and was awarded the highest civilian government award of the United States - the Medal of Freedom. On the Hollywood Walk of Fame, two stars are dedicated to Disney, one for the development of television, the other for contributions to the cinema.
Richard Branson is one of the most brilliant and talented businessmen in the world, billionaire, founder of the international Virgin corporation, record holder in aeronautics, owner of his own island.
Donald Trump is an American construction magnate, owner of the Trump Organization, who later became the President of the United States. He is also known as the owner of the Miss Universe beauty pageant, host and executive producer of the Candidate reality show. Time magazine named him 2016 Person of the Year.
Madonna is one of the most successful women in the world, who has managed to break through poverty itself. There was a period in Madonna's life when she spent the night in attics, and sometimes even checked the contents of garbage cans in search of food. But that didn't break her. What helped our heroine to break through to the very top and become one of the most influential women on the planet?
Elon Musk is an American entrepreneur, inventor, co-founder of PayPal, founder and CEO of SpaceX and Tesla, member of the Board of Directors of SolarCity. Tesla's Model S electric car accelerates to 96 km / h in 2.28 seconds. For his contribution to the commercialization of space, Elon Musk was awarded the Heinlein Prize and received $ 0.5 million (2011). Fortune named him Businessman of the Year (2013) and The Wall Street Journal named CEO of the Year (2013).
Mark Zuckerberg
Pavel Durov is a Russian businessman, programmer, developer and co-founder of the social network VKontakte, headed VKontakte as CEO from 2006 to 2014, currently the founder and CEO of the Telegram messenger.
Phil Knight - american businessman, co-founder of Nike, which has $ 20 billion in annual revenues. He is the richest resident of his native state of Oregon, and in 2015 he was in the TOP 20 richest people on the planet.
Mary Kay is an American entrepreneur, founder of Mary Kay Inc., which specializes in the production and sale of cosmetics and skin care products.
George Soros is an influential investor, financial guru, founder of charitable foundations in 25 countries, father of five, as well as the man "who collapsed the Bank of England", a supporter of the legalization of marijuana, a master of market speculation.
Robert Kiyosaki is an investor, entrepreneur, financial advisor, and author of the rich and poor dad bestselling book series. He is not one of the richest people on the planet, but at the same time, his condition will seem fabulous for many. We are primarily interested not in his condition, but in what helped him become financially free and independent.
Carlos Slim Hel - what is the secret of the world's richest man's success? What needs to be done to achieve such heights? What skills and qualities do you need to develop in order to ascend the pedestal of wealth and fame?
1880–1900
John Morgan
The Monopolist Who Saved the American Economy
At the end of the 19th century, one of the most influential entrepreneurs in the world was John Pierpont Morgan - a cold calculating businessman, monopolist and speculator, while also the savior of the American economy and philanthropist, who laid the foundation for the collections of many American museums. Some explain his fascination with finance by a tragic youth story: at 22, Morgan married a girl with tuberculosis, and after her imminent death he focused on business success.
He made the first big money on speculation in weapons and gold during the American Civil War (however, Morgan did not start from scratch: his father was a major banker). He soon began investing in the railway business and gained control over several industry-forming companies. In the 1880s, John Morgan became interested in the recent invention of Thomas Edison, brought electricity to his mansion, and as a result created the largest electrical engineering concern General Electric so far. The next market in which Morgan became a monopoly is the steel industry. In general, at the end of the 19th century, it was difficult to find an industry in which the financier did not invest, and his acquisitions and mergers were lost. Later, he saved the United States from the banking crisis of 1907, but this event already fell on the years of the Great Generation.
John Rockefeller
First dollar billionaire
John Rockefeller is called the first dollar billionaire: he founded a dynasty that is still one of the richest in the world. Rockefeller's name thundered in the press at the end of the 19th century, thanks to the oil company Standard Oil. Rockefeller became interested in oil in the 1860s, when his friend and chemist Samuel Andrews told him about new ways of processing. By 1870, when Standard Oil appeared, Rockefeller and his partners already had a profitable company and an oil refinery.
Rockefeller was one of the first to realize that the success of the oil business lies in logistics. He negotiated with railway companies and paid for the transportation of oil several times less than competitors. He put the latter before the choice - either to join Standard Oil, or go broke. Rockefeller dumped, sought to stop supplies to other players and by 1880 had become a monopolist in the market, controlling 85–90% of enterprises. After another decade, he had to split the companies, as required by law, but each of them increased revenue and became the progenitor of the current largest oil companies (ExxonMobil, Chevron, and others). However, since the 20th century, the oil market has developed without Rockefeller's participation: he retired and devoted forty years to playing golf and charity.
1900–1920
Milton Hershey
The king of chocolate in America
At the beginning of the 20th century, chocolate in the United States was a rare product delivered from Switzerland, but pastry chef Milton Hershey changed everything. For twenty years he was engaged in the production of sweets, and in 1900 he sold everything for a new dream. For several years, Hershey experimented and created the chocolate formula in his factory surrounded by dairy farms. When Hersheyʼs came out, the entrepreneur quickly became the country's top chocolate seller.
Milton Hershey is one of the first entrepreneurs to invest in the comfort and development of employees, which at the beginning of the 20th century was not at all as fashionable as it is now. Around the plant, he built a whole city with beautiful houses, a bank, a hotel, churches, shops. In addition to chocolate, the industrial school became an important business of his life - Hershey himself received only four classes of education and wanted to prevent the children of workers from repeating his path. Hershey bequeathed all his fortune to this school.
Henry Ford
Carmaker with inline production
"A car for everyone" was the slogan of Henry Ford's company, which produced the first truly mass-produced car. He designed his first car in his free time as an engineer, he was helped by like-minded people. It was 1896, and Henry Ford had yet to become the head of the Detroit auto company - and not do the job. After several failures with racing cars, Henry Ford found investors who supported his idea of \u200b\u200bswitching to mass car production.
There is a widespread belief that Henry Ford invented the assembly line. In fact, he perfected the invention of another American entrepreneur - Ransom Olds - and was the first to establish continuous production. Later, his work organization system was called "Fordism". Ford was one of the first to express the idea that workers should be well paid, then their qualifications will also increase. The first mass-produced Models A and N sold well, but the Model T became truly legendary - budget and quality. It came out in 1908, and since then, Ford Motor, controlled by descendants of Henry Ford, has remained one of the most budget carmakers.
1920–1940
Coco Chanel
Fashionista in a little black dress
The revolution in 20th century fashion was the work of a French girl from a poor family Gabrielle Chanel, or, as everyone called her, Coco. She opened her first store after working as a salesman and singer in a cabaret (not without the help of her fan, the English businessman Arthur Capel). At first, Coco Chanel sold hats - simple and elegant, without feathers and other jewelry, popular at that time in Paris. She adhered to the same style in clothes and gradually gained success among European fashionistas.
A real take-off was waiting for Coco Chanel in the 1920s - it was then that she made the famous little black dresses the standard of fashion around the world, and in general, she saved this color from the association with mourning. One of the best-selling perfumes - Chanel # 5 - appeared in 1921. And a little later, Coco Chanel reinvented jewelry, combining precious stones and rhinestones, and saved women from having to carry a reticule in their hand, creating a bag with a chain. The heyday of the Chanel fashion house ended with the outbreak of World War II, and only a few years after its end, Coco Chanel managed to regain its former glory.
Walt Disney
Mickey Mouse Creator
A garage startup isn't just for the ambitious geeks in Silicon Valley. So did Walt Disney, who came to conquer Hollywood in the 1920s. Prior to that, he had already tried his hand at animation and even opened an animation studio in Kansas City with a partner, but the company went bankrupt. In Los Angeles, Walt Disney continued to pursue his dream: he rented a garage from his uncle and, with the help of his brother, created a cartoon based on Alice in Wonderland. The picture did not receive an insane success, but the brothers became famous among filmmakers.
And already in 1928, perhaps the most famous hero, Mickey Mouse, was born. A year earlier, the Disney studio had already thundered across the country with the rabbit Oswald, but Mickey Mouse also eclipsed his success. Despite the hardships during the Great Depression, the Disney brothers managed not to go bankrupt, and in 1937 they released the first full-length cartoon "Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs" - the first Oscar for The Walt Disney Company. Later, other masterpieces appeared, and Walt Disney was recognized as the person who changed the world of animation.
1940-1960s
Joe Thompson
Ideal supermarket seller
Joe Thompson's ice company employed an enterprising worker who sold eggs, milk and bread on weekday evenings and on Sunday nights when grocery stores were closed. They could be stored for a long time thanks to ice. Joe Thompson was inspired by his idea and began to open small stores where you could buy the most essential products, and a little later - and gasoline for refueling cars. Small houses with a Toteʼm sign were one of the first examples of convenient retail.
And in 1946, Thompson introduced an unusual format for America: his stores began to work 7 days a week from 7 to 11, and the modern name 7-Eleven appeared. With a new timeline in the 1950s, the network quickly moved outside of its native Texas and took over the country. Thompson died in 1961, having only seen the beginning of the transformation of his business into an international corporation (which, moreover, was one of the first in retail to switch to a 24-hour format).
Kiichiro Toyeda
Gentle manufacturer
The Toyota brand was made famous by Kiichiro Toyeda, the eldest son of the owner of a factory that produces looms. When he opened an automobile building division in 1933, no one knew that the family-owned company would radically change its line of business and become one of the world's most successful automakers. The company produced the first cars back in the 1930s and even exported several batches to China.
The war disrupted the country's economy, and Kiichiro and his team had to save the company from bankruptcy by cutting production costs. Later, Toyota's production system formed the basis of the lean concept, which, in turn, became an important component of the lean startup fashion idea. Despite the difficulties, in 1957 the Toyota Crown became the first Japanese car to be exported to America. Unfortunately, Kiichiro Toyeda hardly saw this moment and the true heyday of the company in the 1950s - he died in 1952.
1960–1980
Este Lauder
Revolutionary in the world of cosmetics
Nowadays, in any cosmetics store, you can't get rid of annoying samples, but in the 1940s, when Este Lauder started her business, it became one of those know-hows that allowed her to quickly develop. Lauder was incredibly persistent and picky: she traveled to many beauty salons, talking about her creams, visited almost all purchasing managers in large stores, and personally supervised the work of her windows in large supermarkets.
By 1960, Lauder had taken off in the United States and set off to conquer Europe. One of her tricks is legendary: in the perfumery department of Parisian Lafayette, a businesswoman broke a bottle of perfume that was in her bag a minute earlier, and then loudly announced that it was her new Youth-Dew perfume and introduced herself. Thanks to other daring marketing techniques, Este Lauder revolutionized the cosmetics world, and the company was making $ 170 million a year by the late 1970s. Este Lauder retired from business management at only 87 years old, leading the company to an IPO.
Sam Walton
Retail Leader
Its legendary and largest network Sam Walton began building Walmart department stores after serving in the army. After borrowing money from his father, he bought the franchise from retailer Ben Franklin and quickly made his store one of the most successful in several states. But the owner of the premises did not renew the lease, and Walton had to start all over again. His new store started out as a self-service model and quickly became successful, so Walton acquired small stores one after another - there were already 15 of them in 1960.
At this time, Walton, struggling with competitors, decided to change his strategy: he wanted to offer big discounts and compensate for this with sales. This was possible only in a large store, and in 1962 the first Walmart started operating in Rogers - it was in such small cities that Walton decided to build his empire. The idea succeeded, and in 1970 the company went public. Ten years later, the company operated nearly 300 stores across the country and the global leadership in retail, if not, was not far off.
1980–2000
Bill Gates
Computer industry pioneer
It is impossible to talk about the heroes of the 20th century without mentioning Bill Gates, the pioneer of the personal computer industry, who began programming at the age of 13. His Microsoft appeared in 1975 - Gates created the company with his friend Paul Allen, with whom he did business back in school. In 1980, the MS-DOS operating system came out, and a year later it became the industry standard, thanks to the fact that Gates managed to retain the right to license the system to different manufacturers (the first buyer was IBM).
In 1986, Gates took the company to an IPO and became one of the richest people in the country. By then, he had already released Windows, rivaling Apple's Macintosh operating system. This version was not very successful, besides, Apple soon filed a lawsuit, believing that elements of their program were copied. But after many years of litigation, Apple's claims were rejected. Meanwhile, Gates continued to develop Windows, third-party developers began to write programs for the system, and by 1993 it stood on almost 85% of the world's computers.
A long dispute over Microsoft's monopoly in the 1990s (including in the courts) led to the fact that at the beginning of the 21st century the company was forced to make concessions and release versions of Windows without some of the corporation's built-in software. Soon a new stage in the life of the company began, but by this time Gates had already moved away from the daily struggle - in 2000 he became a technical advisor, began to carry out active charitable activities and engage in other projects.
Jeff Bezos
Main online seller
The future of the company, which promises to make drone delivery a chore, began in 1994, when Jeff Bezos decided he needed to make money off the internet. He had a very successful career (not yet thirty, and already a vice president at a hedge fund), but Bezos left Wall Street to sell books on the Internet. It offered fast, high-quality delivery, and within a month after opening in 1995, Amazon was shipping books not only in the United States, but also in 45 other countries. When Amazon went public in 1997, the IPO failed, but within two years its shares were worth $ 6 billion - more than its two main competitors. Bezos managed to prove something that at the start of Amazon did not seem obvious: you can sell and do it on the Internet in colossal volumes.
It seemed that a company with such rapid growth and constant experimentation (mostly funded by investors) would not survive the dot-com crash, but Bezos managed to save Amazon and start optimizing the business in the new century. Now Amazon sells almost everything and even produces goods under its own brand, and Bezos himself is fulfilling an old dream - bringing space tourism closer to Blue Origin.
2000 - our time
Larry Page and Sergey Brin
Internet innovators
Many people call the meeting between Larry Page and Sergey Brin fateful: they met at Stanford when Brin was asked to show the campus to Larry Page, who had just entered. Already in 1997, they registered the google.com domain, where they transferred their search engine developed at the university. Aspiring entrepreneurs ran Google from dorm rooms, but soon attracted the first investment and set up their first office (although it was in the garage).
The company grew rapidly and in 2000 processed 100 million requests per day. Soon Larry Page and Sergey Brin transferred the functions of the CEO to Eric Schmidt, but continued to develop the company and the entire industry. In addition to search, Google had other services, and in 2004 the company went public and turned Page and Brin into billionaires. They clearly do not plan to leave the innovation scene: Google is spending more and more on research and development of artificial intelligence, unmanned vehicles and other products of the future.
Steve Jobs
Presentation legend
Steve Jobs's enormous contribution to the development of computers is undeniable, but one can also speak of him as a hero of the last generation - along with Generation Z, the legendary iPod, iPhone and iPad appeared, transforming the world of personal gadgets. Returning to Apple in the late 1990s, Jobs made the company profitable again and set a course for innovation. The company has become a leader in digital music, releasing not only players but also the iTunes Music Store. And in 2007, with the introduction of the first iPhone, it was impossible to imagine consumer electronics without Apple products.
The most successful decade in the history of the company was also the hardest for Jobs personally: everyone knows that in 2003 he developed pancreatic cancer. In recent presentations, everyone discussed the haggard appearance of the entrepreneur, but he continued to work and only a month and a half before his death, he left the post of CEO of Apple.
Mark Zuckerberg
In the history of the last decade, one cannot do without Mark Zuckerberg - the creator of the largest social network in the world (although some argue that the idea was stolen by a Harvard student). Retelling how Facebook was created is most likely pointless: everyone knows about the previous rating site Facemash and how sophomore Zuckerberg and his friends launched a social network from a dorm room, where half a university was registered a few weeks later. More importantly, Zuckerberg's story goes far beyond his transformation from a geek programmer to the CEO of one of the most influential companies in the world.
For many years, Zuckerberg, along with his wife Priscilla Chan, has consistently continued to invest in education and technology development around the world, defining the values \u200b\u200bof his generation. After the birth of their daughter, the couple announced that they were donating 99% of their Facebook shares to the Chan Zuckerberg Initiative, which will fight the digital divide around the world.
Heroes of our time
You can endlessly continue the list of the heroes of the current generation who have changed and continue to change the world. For example, the most ambitious and insane projects of the 21st century - the colonization of Mars, self-driving cars, high-speed trains - are inextricably linked with the name of Elon Musk. Once upon a time our reality was blown up by Jack Dorsey (and even if Twitter is no longer a revolutionary product). It's also hard to imagine the present without Travis Kalanick - with all the scandals and unprofitability of Uber fighting for a new taxi market. It’s impossible not to remember Brian Chesky, who changed travel for many people with Airbnb. It's unthinkable to imagine life without Jack Ma - the creator of Alibaba, the largest e-commerce company. Finally, one cannot fail to mention Vitalik Buterin - although not quite an entrepreneur, but a real hero of the current generation - who plans a blockchain revolution using his Ethereum platform.
Someone turns over millions and billions, but this is not you yet? To be honest, what do you think when you hear success stories about Her or about Him, which are all fantastically successful: the first million years like this at 25, the most expensive car, a luxurious house, several operating businesses that inspire assets ... The success stories of wealthy people are, in fact, too motley to be "combed" with the same brush and taken stereotyped.
It can often seem that rich people have become rich without hitting a finger - after all, behind such a successful person there were already mountains of gold, green rustling bills donated by their parents, and not taking advantage of all this is a sin.
So that it doesn't seem like anything, and finally understand the reality for yourself - that you can sit in the soft leather interior of a car, or open a bottle of the most expensive wine on your own terrace, and all this without reference to the already prepared soil, we will simply demonstrate 10 real stories becoming the richest people in the world from virtually nothing. From scratch, no support and no gold diapers.
By the way, not all the biographies of the world's richest people, about whom we will now tell, are familiar to you. If you were guided only by Forbes ratings - there will be an opening. Isn't there a reason to expand your own boundaries?
10. Michael Rubin opens the ten richest people on the planet. The future billionaire and founder of Kynetic sold seeds to neighbors as a child. At the age of 10, an enterprising boy already hired 5 children to remove snow from neighbors' lawns for payment. At the age of 14, Michael already had his own store, and at 23, he led a company with a turnover of $ 50 million. Michael's fortune is estimated at $ 2.3 billion. Almost always strong personalities begin this way: with the manifestation of an entrepreneurial streak from an early age.
9. Oprah Winfrey will be the only woman in our ranking of the richest people in the world. Yes, not in the first place, but if it were a rating of hard work and dedication, she could safely give the championship. She is now 62 years old and her path to success has nothing to do with the story of Cinderella. She can answer questions about how rich people became rich based on personal experience: she plowed and achieved everything herself. Oprah Winfrey was born into a poor family. Mother was a maid and father was a miner.
For the first 6 years of her life, Oprah lived with her grandmother in the wilderness. The American TV presenter herself admitted in an interview that she was raped at 9 years old and became pregnant at 14. The child died shortly after birth. At the age of 17, Oprah began working as a reporter, and in 1986 she created her own program - The Oprah Winfrey Show. In 2011 she launched her own television channel OWN. The TV presenter's fortune is estimated at $ 3.2 billion.
8. This guy doesn't turn over tens of billions, as some of the rating representatives, but he has something in stock: almost 10 billion dollars of his own earned capital. He owns 7.6% of the shares of Facebook. Dustin Moskowitz was born into a Jewish family in Washington. The father worked as a psychiatrist, but more information about Dustin's family was not disclosed.
7. In the honorable seventh place of our TOP-10 richest people Canadian-American engineer Elon Musk. He is 12 years older than Dustin Moskowitz. Elon Musk's capital is $ 12.3 billion. He founded SpaceX and X.com. The latter, after merging with Confinity, was named PayPal and was sold for $ 1.5 billion. Musk was born in South Africa. True, the father was a businessman, and the mother was a famous model, so it is difficult to call the family poor. But there is a downside to the coin - at school Elon was often beaten, and this, of course, left a considerable mark on the level of self-esteem.
At 12, Elon made his first video game and sold it for $ 500. It was the first self-employment on the road to billions. If you look at what these children do from an early age, you can predict future success for them. And the success "overtook" Elon.
6. Meet Li Kashin - the richest and most influential person in Hong Kong and Asia. While Forbes estimated the capital of Hong Kong "Superman" and counted 25.5 billion dollars, it grew to 34. And this is the data for 2015. We think for 2016 Lee still did well. In narrow circles, this enterprising Hong Konger is called "Superman" and is now 87 years old.
Li Kashin is the chairman of the board of Cheung Kong Group and Hutchison Whampoa, which capitalize about 15% of the Hong Kong stock market. Among the stories of rich people who started from scratch, his is one of the most difficult. For understanding: Lee was born in the family of an ordinary teacher.
From the fifth grade, Kashin began selling watch straps, and a little later he got a job at a factory producing plastic watches. 16 hours of work at the factory and after attending evening school - this is how the Hong Kong guy Li Kashin began his journey to the first million. Having gained experience in the factory, he began to sell plastic flowers himself, and soon became the head of his own company.
5. The stories of rich people who started from scratch are not the same. Like the story of Sergei Brin, who also falls into our ranking of the richest people in the world in fifth place. Sergey is nothing at all - 42 years old and he is the co-founder of Google. Sergei was born into a Jewish family of mathematicians who moved to the United States in 1979, and the future billionaire was only 5 years old. In 2016, according to Forbes magazine, the fortune of an American entrepreneur with Russian roots was estimated at almost $ 35 billion.
4. You've probably heard about this guy too. Larry Page is an American billionaire who, together with Sergey Brin, made the first search engine, which eventually grew into the most powerful tool for finding any information - Google. Larry was born into a family of professors, and while studying at the prestigious Stanford University, he met Brin. The joint launch of Google, as we see, has become a gold mine for the guys. Now the fortune of Larry Page is estimated at $ 32.3 billion, and this is 17th place in the Forbes ranking, however, in 2014. We dare to assume that in 2 years a couple of billions have increased.
Biographies of the world's richest people: TOP-3. Who are the leaders?
3. Another example of crazy success without any, it would seem, chances of it from birth - American businessman Sheldon Adelson. Sheldon is one of the twenty richest people according to Forbes magazine. Adelson once again proves: the richest people on the planet are not those who were born and immediately fell into golden swaddling clothes. The son of a taxi driver, a 12-year-old newspaper salesman, a court reporter and even a toiletry salesman. Sheldon got a lot. The future American billionaire was born into a Jewish family. And by the way, he is recognized as the richest Jew.
According to the most recent data that have been announced, Sheldon Adelson's fortune is $ 38 billion. Not bad, right? The billionaire receives the main income from his investments in real estate: the construction of casinos, hotels, shops, expo centers, etc.
2. We only write "Mark", and you already understand who we are talking about. And yes, you are not mistaken. The founder of the social network Facebook, Mark Zuckerberg, is also in the TOP-10 of the richest people in the world. In May, the information on the status of Mark (talking about money) was updated, and the capital was $ 51.6 billion. But the guy is only 32 years old! By the way, like many on the list, it is of Jewish origin. Father is a dentist, mother is a psychiatrist. Mark has 3 sisters. How much do you think the doctors could provide for 4 children? While still a schoolboy, Mark developed a network version of the game "Risk", and while studying at Harvard - an internal social network, which he himself did not bring to mind, but the guys came to the rescue: Dustin Moskowitz, Eduardo Saverin and others.
1. The ex-president of Inditex could not be out of our list of the TOP 10 richest people in the world. And, you know, we put it first. While many are multiplying their incomes several times, Amancio Ortega, we are sure, is not "lost". It was he who in October last year received the title of the richest man on the planet according to Forbes magazine. But in May 2016, his fortune was estimated at $ 72.9 billion. If the name of the company Indetex does not tell you anything, then you have heard of the Zara brand. Here Amancio is the founder of this brand as well.
Amancio's father was a railroad worker, and his mother, even better, was a servant. The family was so poor that the guy did not even graduate from high school, and from the age of 13 he began working as a messenger in a shirt store. Yes, did the 13-year-old guy then think that in 2015 he would lead the ranking of the richest people on the planet? Doubt. Today, the billionaire invests considerable sums in real estate in Florida, Madrid, London, as well as in banks and tourism.
This is how the ranking of the richest people in the world looks like, who started the path to their success from scratch. Are there no borders? They really don't exist. Just take action and any goal will be achieved. Who knows, maybe you will find yourself in the Forbes ranking in a couple of years.
International sanctions, falling oil prices, devaluation of the ruble hit businesses hard and shook up the Forbes list. Who is in the top 10?
1. Leonid Mikhelson
Chairman of the Board of OJSC "Novatek"
Condition: $ 14.4 billion (+ $ 2.7 billion)
Early 1990s Since 1987, he headed Kuibyshevtruboprovodstroy, in 1991 he transformed the trust into a private enterprise Nova.
Capital A block of shares in Novatek (24.8%), Sibur (43.2%).
Numeral Net profit Novateka grew 2.1 times in 2015 compared to the previous year, to 74.4 billion rubles.
Statistics In March 2016, the board of directors of Novatek increased the composition of the board from 9 to 12 people.
Deal Chinese Sinopec acquired 10% of Sibur for $ 1.3 billion, the deal was closed in December 2015.
Event At the end of 2015, Novatek turned to President Vladimir Putin with a request to allow gas to be supplied to Europe through Gazprom Export.
Partners Gennady Timchenko (No. 5), Leonid Simanovsky (No. 87).
Charity Heads the V-A-C (Victoria - the Art of Being Contemporary) foundation, named after his daughter Victoria. The Foundation supports contemporary art, provides grants to young artists and curators. In addition, he is an investor in the Victoria Gallery in Samara.
Detail Mikhelson is the owner of a large development project in the Leningrad Region: 510 hectares near Sestroretsk, including 370 hectares of alluvial territory. It is planned to build more than 3 million sq. km of real estate.
Sport In the fall of 2013, Novatek became the main sponsor of the Russian Football Union instead of Gazprom. In January 2014, Sibur became a partner of the NBA in the development of basketball in the Russian regions. In addition, Sibur supports the Russian Student Basketball Association.
2. Mikhail Fridman
Chairman of the Board of Directors of LetterOne Holdings and the Supervisory Board of Alfa Group
Condition: $ 13.3 billion (- $ 1.3 billion)
Early 1990s As a student, he traded in scarce theater tickets, created the Strawberry Glade club in the MISIS hostel in Belyaevo, arranged meetings, concerts and discos. In 1988, together with his friends from MISIS, he organized a cooperative "Courier", which was engaged in the delivery of food to the population. The first big money at that time was earned by washing windows.
Capital The main owner of the consortium Alfa Group (Alfa Bank, X5 Retail Group (48%), A1, Rosvodokanal) and LetterOne Holdings group (Dea, Vimpelcom (56.2%), Turkcell (13.22% )).
Numeral Alfa Group received $ 14 billion in March 2013 from the sale of its stake in TNK-BP to Rosneft.
Deal In March 2015, LetterOne acquired the German oil and gas company Dea for € 5.1 billion. In October, at the request of the UK authorities, under the threat of revocation of licenses for the development of fields, Dea sold its assets located in the kingdom. In return, the Norwegian assets of the German energy concern E.On were acquired.
Event In 2013, Alfa Group established a special company for its foreign assets, LetterOne Holdings. In 2014, LetterOne acquired the group's shares in Vimpelсom.
Venture In February 2016, LetterOne invested $ 200 million in the Uber taxi service, which was valued at $ 68 billion at the end of last year.
Brand name Owns brands "Beeline", "Pyaterochka", "Perekrestok".
Citizenship Israel.
Charity Alfa Bank finances the Life Line charitable foundation, which helps children with severe cardiac diseases.
Hobby He is fond of cinema, music, chess.
Details
In his spare time, he flies by helicopter to his recreation center in the Tver region, where he not only rests, but also negotiates with partners.
Friedman is a fan of extreme off-road travel. In 2015, he traveled to Iran, and most of the billionaire's permanent companions, including those on the Forbes list, were afraid to join him.
3. Alisher Usmanov
Founder and Major Shareholder of USM Holdings
Condition: $ 12.5 billion (- $ 1.9 billion)
First business In the late 1980s, he organized the Agroplast cooperative, which made plastic bags.
Capital The main shareholder (48%) of USM Holdings, which unites assets in the mining industry and metallurgy (Metalloinvest), telecommunications (Megafon), the Internet (Mail.ru Group and DST Global), television (UTV Holding, CTC Media ").
Numeral Usmanov allocated 1 billion rubles in 2015 to support the Russian Football Union.
Deal In 2015, after a protracted corporate conflict, Usmanov's structures managed to buy out the share of the UCP fund in the VKontakte social network, thereby consolidating all the largest Russian social networks.
Event At the beginning of 2015, the Mail.Ru Group holding controlled by Usmanov surpassed Yandex in terms of capitalization, becoming the most expensive Internet company in Russia.
Brand name In 2015, Usmanov increased his stake in the English football club Arsenal by purchasing the shares of his partner Farhad Moshiri. Thus, he owns 30.04% of the shares of the football club, solely - publishing house Kommersant.
Partners Andrey Skoch (No. 18), Ivan Tavrin (No. 194).
Charity He founded the charitable organization Art, Science and Sport, which helps sick children, as well as theaters, museums and sports organizations. In 2014, he bought the Nobel medal for the discoverer of the structure of DNA James Watson for $ 4.1 million and returned it to the scientist.
Toy He owns two yachts, both called Dilbar (after his mother): 2005 (Oceanco shipyard), 66 m, maximum speed 16 knots, and 2008 (Lurssen shipyard), 110 m, maximum speed 21 knots. Also has an Airbus A320-300 aircraft.
Sport He is the Chairman of the Board of Trustees of the Russian Fencing Federation, President of the International Fencing Federation.
4. Vladimir Potanin
President of the Interros Holding, General Director of MMC Norilsk Nickel
Condition: $ 12.1 billion (- $ 3.3 billion)
Who was in the USSR He worked at the USSR Ministry of Foreign Trade, in 1990 moved to the International Bank for Economic Cooperation and in the same year created Interros, which offered consulting services to participants in foreign trade activities.
Capital The basis of the fortune is a 30.41% stake in MMC Norilsk Nickel, the largest producer of nickel and palladium in the world.
Statistics At the end of 2015, Norilsk Nickel's revenue decreased by 28% compared to 2014, to $ 8.5 billion.
Deal In 2013-2014, Potanin's Interros sold the Profmedia media holding and the Cinema Park cinema chain, receiving a total of about $ 1 billion.
Court At the end of 2013, he divorced his first wife, Natalia. The proceedings for the division of property in the courts have not yet been completed.
Conflict From 2008 to 2012, he participated in the so-called nickel wars and fought with another shareholder of the MMC Oleg Deripaska (No. 41) for control over Norilsk Nickel. In 2012, Potanin and Deripaska, through the mediation of Roman Abramovich (No. 13), signed a settlement agreement.
Politics From August 1996 to March 1997, he was the first deputy prime minister of the Russian government.
Charity In 1999 he founded the Vladimir Potanin Charitable Foundation, which spends about $ 10 million a year on education, culture and sports. In 2013, Potanin joined the Giving Pledge movement, founded by Bill Gates and Warren Buffett, which brings together businessmen who have decided to spend most of their fortune on charity. In 2015 he transferred the endowment of the fund from the UK to the Russian jurisdiction.
Hobby Alpine skiing, dominoes. Plays hockey with President Putin, trains with Vyacheslav Fetisov.
Toy Yacht Anastasia, 2008, length 75.5 m, maximum speed 15 knots.
Sport One of the initiators of the Winter Olympics in Sochi in 2014, invested $ 2.2 billion in the construction of the Rosa Khutor ski resort (of which about $ 500 million of his own funds).
5. Gennady Timchenko
Member of the Board of Directors of Novatek and Sibur
Condition: $ 11.4 billion (+ $ 0.7 billion)
Early 1990s He worked as vice-president of the foreign trade organization Kirishineftekhimexport (Kinex), established at the Kirishsky refinery in the Leningrad region. In 1996, at a privatization auction, together with partners, he bought Kinex, from which Gunvor later grew, one of the world's largest oil traders.
Capital Shares of Novatek (23.5%), Sibur (14.5%), Stroytransgaz group (63%), Transoil (80%).
Numeral 161 billion rubles is the sum of state orders received by Timchenko's structures in 2015, according to Forbes.
Event On March 20, 2014, the United States imposed sanctions on Russia. Along with Timchenko, the list included representatives of the Russian leadership, as well as their "closest advisers", since the United States considers them responsible for Moscow's policy towards Ukraine.
Partner Leonid Mikhelson (No. 1).
Brand name Aquanika water.
Citizenship Finland.
Hobby Raises Romy - daughter of the Labrador Koni, the dog of Vladimir Putin.
Sport President of the SKA ice hockey club, chairman of the KHL board of directors, vice president of the Russian Olympic Committee, a member of the board of trustees of the Russian Ice Hockey Federation and the board of trustees of the Russian Chess Federation, one of the founders of the Yavara-Neva judo club.
Charity The Elena and Gennady Timchenko Charitable Foundation is dedicated to supporting the older generation, developing sports and culture, and helping children.
6. Alexey Mordashov
Chairman of the board directors of PJSC Severstal
Condition: $ 10.9 billion (- $ 2.1 billion)
Early 1990s In 1992, he was appointed Director of Finance and Economics at the Cherepovets Metallurgical Plant (ChMK). He signed the first contracts with traders who sold metal to the West. Having bought up a controlling stake in Chelyabinsk Metallurgical Plant, he removed director Yuri Lipukhin from managing the enterprise.
Capital Severstal (79.2%), Nord Gold (90.6%), Power Machines (100%).
Numeral In 2015, he received $ 577 million in dividends from Severstal.
Event In May 2015, he resigned from the post of CEO of Severstal, which he had held since 1996.
Brand name Owns the Utkonos online grocery store and 15% of the shares of TUI, one of the largest travel companies in Europe.
Partners Together with Yuri Kovalchuk (# 162), he owns the Russia Bank, which is under sanctions, the National Media Group and T2 RTK Holding, a joint venture between Tele2 and Rostelecom.
Detail It plans to invest 10.5 billion rubles in the next 10 years in the development of its Sveza enterprise, the largest plywood producer in Russia.
7. Victor Vekselberg
Chairman of the Board of Directors of the Renova Group of Companies
Condition: $ 10.5 billion (- $ 3.7 billion)
Early 1990s In 1988, he headed the laboratory of the Special Design Bureau for rodless pumps "Konnas", together with his employees he organized a cooperative to develop software... In 1989 he created the Scientific and Production Enterprise "KomVek" ("Vekselberg's Company"), which was engaged in the sale abroad of aluminum and copper obtained from waste cables. In October 1990, together with an institute friend, at that time already a US citizen Leonard Blavatnik, he established the Renova joint venture.
Capital Owns 5.66% of UC Rusal shares, large stakes in the Swiss companies Oerlikon (44.7%) and Sulzer (63.4%).
Numeral In March 2013, he received $ 7 billion in cash from the sale of its stake in TNK-BP to Rosneft.
Court Businessman Mikhail Abyzov (# 133) is trying to sue Vekselberg for $ 450 million for his share in IES-holding. The case is being considered in the British Virgin Islands.
Former senator Leonid Lebedev (# 108) calls himself a "secret shareholder" of TNK-BP and is demanding $ 2 billion in compensation from former partners of Viktor Vekselberg and Leonard Blavatnik.
Deal In August 2015, Renova doubled its stake in Sulzer. The company spent about $ 1.1 billion on the purchase of about 30% of the shares.
Collection He owns the world's largest collection of Faberge jewelry, the ex-position is exhibited in the businessman's private museum in the Shchuvalov Palace in St. Petersburg, on the restoration of which he spent about $ 40 million.
Brand name Akado.
Charity In 2015, Renova donated its 5-star Sochi Azimut hotel to the Russian Children's Educational Center.
8. Vladimir Lisin
Chairman of the Board of Directors, NLMK
Condition: $ 9.3 billion (- $ 2.3 billion)
Who was in the USSR He began his working career as an electrical fitter at the Yuzhkuzbassugol association. After graduating from the institute, he worked at metallurgical enterprises, rose from an assistant steelmaker to deputy general director of the Karaganda metallurgical plant. In the late 1980s, he headed the Soviet-Swiss firm "TSK-Steel", which traded substandard metal abroad.
Early 1990s He was vice president of Trans CIS Commodities, one of the main companies of the Trans World Group of the Cherny brothers and the Ruben brothers.
Capital NLMK (85.54%), transport holding Universal Cargo Logistics (UCL Holding, 100%).
Deal In 2011-2012, he spent $ 5.8 billion on the purchase from the state of shares of Freight One, the largest operator of freight rail transportation in Russia, which became part of UCL.
Collection Collected the world's largest collection of cast iron at the plant in the Ural city of Kasli (operating since 1749).
Hobby Sports shooting, hunting. Built the largest Russian sports and shooting complex "Lisya Nora" in the Moscow region.
Sport Vice President of the Russian Olympic Committee, President of the Shooting Union of Russia and the European Shooting Confederation (ESC), Vice President of the International Shooting Sports Federation (ISSF), President of the All-Russian Summer Olympic Sports Association (VALOVS).
Detail In the Rospatent database, Lisin is listed as the author of new methods for washing a blast furnace, processing steel in a ladle, obtaining a coating on a metal strip and the owner of a couple of dozen more patents.
9. Vagit Alekperov
President of NK "Lukoil"
Condition: $ 8.9 billion (- $ 3.3 billion)
First business In the late 1980s he worked director general PA Kogalymneftegaz; 1990–1991 - Deputy Minister of the USSR Oil and Gas Industry. In 1992-1993, he created the LangepasUraiKogalymneft oil concern, on the basis of which Lukoil was established. Since then he has been the president of an oil company. During the privatization process, he became its largest shareholder.
Capital Lukoil shares (23%).
Numeral $ 480 million received in the form of dividends for 2015, for the purchase additional shares Lukoil spent $ 111 million
Charity Founder of the Our Future Foundation for Regional Social Programs, which is engaged in the development of social entrepreneurship.
Collection In October 2015, he opened his own Museum of Numismatics in Moscow. There are more than 700 coins on display: Ancient Greece, the Roman Empire, Byzantium, medieval Europe, the Russian Empire, the RSFSR and the USSR. The most expensive coin, the platinum 12 rubles of 1844, was bought in 2013 at the Maison Palombo auction for 380,000 Swiss francs or $ 410,000.
Details
For the Sochi Olympics, Lukoil reconstructed the Krasnopolyanskaya hydroelectric power station worth 475 million rubles.
In 2013, he bequeathed his entire block of shares to his son Yusuf on the condition that he would not have the right to sell or divide this block. The goal is to provide Lukoil with stability for many years to come.
10. Herman Khan
Member of the Board of Directors of LetterOne Holdings and the Supervisory Board of Alfa Group
Condition: $ 8.7 billion (- $ 0.8 billion)
First business After graduation, he started sewing and selling clothes together with Alexander Furman, a future State Duma deputy. After the partner left the business, Khan did not want to work alone and in 1989 he joined the Alfa-Photo cooperative of Mikhail Fridman (No. 2) and Alexei Kuzmichev (No. 15), whom he knew from MISIS.
Capital The second shareholder after Mikhail Fridman is Alfa Group (Alfa Bank, X5 Retail Group (48%), A1, Rosvodokanal) and LetterOne Holdings (Dea, Vimpelcom (56.2%), Turkcell (13.22 %)).
Numeral LetterOne received almost $ 200 million in dividends from Turkish operator Turkcell in 2015.
Deal In March 2015, LetterOne Group acquired the German oil and gas company Dea for € 5.1 billion. Han, a former executive Director TNK-BP took an active part in preparing the deal.
Citizenship Israel.
Hobby Likes to hunt in the company of Petr Aven (# 19) and Iskander Makhmudov (# 21). All three are founders of Medved LLC in the Arkhangelsk region, which, according to the Unified State Register of Legal Entities, is engaged in "hunting and breeding of wild animals, including the provision of services in these areas."
Detail In 2010 he bought a house in London in Eaton Square for $ 91 million.