Trump drops 92 places on Forbes rich list
October 17, 2017
The magazine said the US President's total wealth had fallen $600 million (510 million euros) in 2017 to a net worth of $3.1 billion, largely due to a weakening in the New York City retail and office real estate markets.
The magazine said the downgrading was also a result of "new information" it had collected after Donald Trump had claimed during his campaign in 2015 that he owned $9.2 billion in assets and $8.7 billion in net worth.
On Tuesday, Luisa Kroll, Forbes magazine senior wealth editor said Donald Trump had not sought to boost his ranking on the list, as she said he had in previous years. "We'll see if he tweets today. I know he cares a lot," she added.
The US President ranked No.156 in 2016, and now has to share the 248th spot with 27-year-old Evan Spiegel, co-founder and CEO of the parent of Snapchat.
Spiegel was the youngest on the list, Kroll said. "And he's been the youngest for a number of years," she added. Spiegel took his photo messaging company public on the New York Stock Exchange earlier this year.
Forbes used closing stock prices from Sept. 22, 2017, to compile its list of the 400 richest Americans. Their total net worth grew from $2.4 trillion in 2016 to $2.7 trillion this year.
Record-breaking entry level
Microsoft co-founder Bill Gates topped the list for a 24th consecutive year on a net worth of $89 billion with Amazon's Jeff Bezos, worth $81.5 billion, number two.
Meanwhile, iconic investor Warren Buffett, who before 2016 held the second spot for 15 consecutive years, has been listed at third place for the second year in a row.
The minimum net worth now required to be counted among the very richest Americans hit a record high of $2 billion, up from $1.7 billion in 2015 and 2016. There were 169 billionaires who did not make the cut.
"America's richest are richer than ever. But even at these new heights, entrepreneurs are breaking into the ranks for the first time as they mint fortunes in everything from Netflix and telecom to vodka and fishing," said Luisa Kroll.
Among the 22 newcomers is Netflix cofounder and CEO Reed Hastings. Twenty-six people dropped off from last year, including US Commerce Secretary Wilbur Ross.
Read more: US self-made woman billionaire falls from riches to rags
There were only 50 women on the list. Alice Walton, the daughter of Wal-Mart founder Sam Walton, was the highest ranked at 13. The biggest gainer in dollar terms was Facebook's Mark Zuckerberg, chalking up a $15.5 billion increase in net worth to retain his number four ranking at $71 billion.
uhe/bb (AFP, Forbes.com)