10 Countries with the Most Wealthy People

There are several ways to estimate the wealth of a nation, ranging from the traditional one of calculating its gross domestic product to the contemporary notion of ranking its people on the happiness index. Then again there is a much simpler way of totaling how many of its citizens rank among the world’s wealthiest. Here thus is a brief account of the ten countries with the most wealthy people.

1. USA
   
   Living up to its title as the Promised Land, United States consistently figures as home of the largest number of billionaires in the world. According to Forbes, America is home to 403 billionaires who among them have a net worth of US$1.3 trillion. Currently, three of the world’s top ten billionaires, Bill Gates, Warren Buffet and Larry Ellison belong to the United States. The Forbes 2012 List of Richest Americans also states  that two-thirds of the wealthiest people in the U.S. added to their fortunes, boosting their average net worth by $400 million to a record $4.2 billion¹. The list is still led by software mogul and Microsoft CEO, Bill Gates and other names among the top five are Warren Buffet, Larry Ellison, David Koch and Charles Kock.
   
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2. China
   
   The People’s Republic of China is the next on the list of countries with the wealthiest people. China has a total of 115 billionaires according the Forbes 2012 list of world’s billionaires² and among them they cover 10.6% of the world’s total billionaires. China’s presence on the 2012 world Billionaire List is led by Robin Li, the technology czar who has a net worth of $10.2 billion. Other Chinese names among the world’s top 150 billionaires are Liang Kengen and Zong Qinghou.
    
3. Russia
   
   Despite the controversy surrounding Russian billionaires in terms of law and corruption, they have a formidable presence among the world’s billionaires with a total of 95 billionaires in 2012. The Russian presence is led by Alisher Usmanov ranking at 28 and who has a net worth of $18.1 billion with interests extending from steel and telecom to other investments. Other Russian billionaires among the top 50 world’s billionaires are Vladimir Lisin, Alexei Mordashov and Vladimor Potanin.
   

   

4. India
   
   Even though India has long figured among the so-called Third World economies, the fact that its rate of economic growth has remained one of the best in the world is borne out by the presence of 55 Indians on the current list of global billionaires. India thus ranks after United States, China and Russia for individuals with a total net worth of one billion dollars and above and it accounts for roughly 4.5% of the global total of 1,226 billionaires across the six continents. The wealthiest Indians in the world are Reliance honcho Mukesh Ambani with a net worth of $22.3 billion, steel magnate Lakshmi Mittal with a net worth of $20.7 billon and infotech magnate Aziz Premji with a net worth of $15.9 billion.
    
5. Germany
   
   Germany is the fifth country in the world with the highest number of wealthy individuals. On the 2012 Forbes List of World’s billionaires, there are 52 billionaires from Germany. The twelfth richest billionaire in the world is Karl Albrecht with a net worth of $21.0 billion. The other German names among the top 50 of the world’s billionaires are Theo Albrecht ranked 20 with a net worth of $17.5 billion, Adolf Merckle at 36th position with a net worth of $11.5 billion and Michael Otto and family ranked 42nd with assets worth$10.4 billion.
    
6. Brazil
   
   Brazil is the only South American country in this list of the top ten countries with the wealthiest citizens. There are forty Brazilians on the list of 2012 World’s Billionaires and this group is led by Eike Batista at seventh global position. Batista’s net worth is $30 billion and the sources of his wealth are mining and oil. Other Brazilians among the top hundred world’s billionaires are Joseph Safra with a net worth of $13.8 billion, Antonio Ermirio Moraes and family with a net worth of $12.2 billion and Jorje Paulo Lemann with a net worth of $12 billion.
    
7. Turkey
   
   The next country with the highest number of wealthiest people is Turkey with 38 billionaires in the 2012 list of global billionaires compiled by Forbes. There are six Turkish individuals among the top 500 billionaires of the world, led by Husnu Ozyegin at 377th position who has a net worth of $3 billion with diversified sources of wealth, including finance. other names from Turkey among the top 500 global billionaires are Mehmet Emin Karamehmet with a net worth of $2.9 billion, Murat Ülker with assets of $2.8 billion, Semahat Sevim Arsel and Ferit Faik Şahenkwith a net worth of $2.6 billion each and Mustafa Rahmi Koç with net worth of $2.5 billion.
    
8. Hong Kong
   
   The Asian presence on the list of world’s fastest growing economies is further underlined by the fact that Hong Kong has the eighth largest number of wealthiest people in the world with 36 billionaires among the world’s total in 2012. The richest Hong Kong individual is Sir Ka-shing Li who has $25.5 billion worth of assets and ranks as the ninth richest billionaire in the world. Other names from Hong Kong to figure among the top hundred billionaires of the world are Raymond Kwok and family with net worth of $18.3 billion, Lee Shau Kee with net worth of $18 billion and Chen Yung Tung with a net worth of $16 billion.
    
9. United Kingdom
   
   The sixth-largest economy in the world, United Kingdom is home to thirty-three of its billionaires according to the 2012 Forbes list of World’s billionaires. The UK presence is led by Gerald Cavendish Grosvenor and family who rank seventy-eighth at the global billionaire list with assets worth $11 billion. The next UK citizen to figure among the top hundred of world’s billionaires is brother-duo, David and Simon Reuben whose net worth is believed to be nine billion.
    
10. Japan
    
    Japan is the economy in the third-largest economy in the world by nominal GDP and fourth-largest economy by purchasing power parity. It is also the world's fourth-largest exporter and fourth-largest importer. According to the 2012 Forbes World Billionaire List, Japan has a 22-name strong presence, led by Tadashi Yanai and family with assets worth 410 billion and ranking 88th among the world’s billionaires. Other Japanese names to figure among the top global 200 billionaires are Masayoshi Son, Hiroshi Mikitani as well as Kunio Busujima and family.

Reference:

1. Forbes - The Forbes 400 - The Richest People in America
    
2. Forbes - The World's Billionaires