del.icio.us
Digg It!
E-Mail to a Friend
Printable Version
Comments
Carlos Slim
It's official: Carlos Slim Helu, the son of a Mexico City shopkeeper, has dethroned Bill Gates as the world's richest man.
The news was reported this week by Forbes Magazine, which every year produces a widely anticipated list of the world's richest men and women.
Contrary to the economic malaise around the world, Slim, along with many billionaires, saw his fortune explode last year, skyrocketing by $18.5 billion, to an estimated $53.5 billion.
Only 12 percent of the world's billionaires saw their wealth shrink last year, according to Forbes.
Gates is worth $53 billion. The man in third place, Warren Buffett, is worth $47 billion.
Slim is an engineer, businessman and philanthropist whose energies have largely been focused on the telecommunications industry.
In recent months, Slim has made headlines regarding rumors that he may purchase the New York Times. Slim is currently the company's largest stockholder aside from members of the owners, the Sulzberger family.
In January of 2009, Slim floated the New York Times a $250 million loan. Still, slim this month denied that he intends to purchase the paper.
Although Forbes's list is closely watched, it isn't the only publication to declare Slim the world's richest man. In 2007, CNN made the same claim.
