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London tops NYC in wealth, Kylie Jenner becomes world’s youngest self-made billionaire
Other - MARCH 6, 2019

London tops NYC in wealth, Kylie Jenner becomes world’s youngest self-made billionaire

by Andrea Zander

In terms of ultra-high-net-worth individuals (UHNWIs), London has the largest population with 4,944, an increase of 582 over the last five years, the most of any city, according to Knight Frank’s City Wealth Index, published as part of its annual Wealth Report.

For HNWIs, Tokyo reigns supreme with 488,582, although New York City has seen the highest growth with an additional 55,434 HNWIs. New York also has the highest concentration of billionaires, with 94. Growth in Asia is noticeable, with Asian cities holding six of the top 10 spots in the wealth category. Taipei comes in ninth, following 17 percent growth in its UHNWI population over the past five years.

Forbes also listed its ranking of the world’s wealthiest individuals. Nearly 1,000 billionaires tracked by Forbes saw declines in their estimated net worths.

British-Indian businessmen Hinduja brothers are the highest-ranked U.K. resident on Forbes' 2019 list of world billionaires. Four close-knit siblings — Srichand, Gopichand, Prakash and Ashok — control multinational conglomerate the Hinduja Group. Overall, Hinduja is ranked number 65 with his net worth totaling $16.9 billion.

Michael Bloomberg is the highest-ranking New York resident on Forbes’ 2019 list of world billionaires. Overall, Bloomberg is ranked number nine with his net worth totaling $55.5 billion. David Koch is the second-highest-ranking New York resident.  Overall, Koch is ranked number 11 with his net worth totaling $50.5 billion.

Jeff Bezos was named the world’s wealthiest individual for the second year running. Bezos is worth an estimated $131 billion, up $19 billion from the previous year.

Bill Gates followed in second. Gates would have reigned as number one, if he hadn’t donated $35.8 billion to his foundation, Forbes noted. Warren Buffett came in third place, with his net worth falling by $1.5 billion to $82.5 billion.

And Kylie Jenner was named the world’s youngest self-made billionaire at 21 years old. She overtook Facebook founder Mark Zuckerberg, who previously held the title of youngest self-made billionaire from the age of 23.

In total, the top 20 billionaires on the list have a combined wealth of $1.2 trillion, unchanged from last year, the highest amount ever. This latest count shows there are 2,153 billionaires in the world, 55 fewer than a year ago.

To read the full report, Knight Frank’s City Wealth Index, click here.

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