Forbes releases billionaire list with plenty of Texas representation

Texas money

Fifty, that’s the number of billionaires in the Lone Star State and several of those are from the North Texas area.

Forbes released today its 31st Annual World’s Billionaires List – 2,043 billionaires made the list, with an average net worth of $3.75 billion.

Among those with North Texas ties are Alice Walton, the Walton fortune heir who ranks No. 17 on the list with a net worth of $33.8 billion. Also with North Texas roots is Andrew Beal, with the banking and real estate investor ranked No. 127 with a net worth of $10.4 billion. The Dallas Cowboys’ Jerry Jones comes in at No. 303 with a net worth of $5.2 billion.

Among those with close Fort Worth ties are Robert Bass, ranked No. 441 with a net worth of $4 billion, Edward Bass at No. 660 with a net worth of $3 billion and Lee Bass at No. 693 with a net worth of $2.9 million. Sid Bass comes in at No. 717 with a net worth of $2.8 billion. David Bonderman of private equity firm TPG comes in at No. 814 with a net worth of $2.5 billion.

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Bill Gates remains in the top spot for the fourth year in a row and has been the richest person in the world for 18 out of the past 23 years. Gates has a fortune of $86 billion, up from $75 billion last year. Warren Buffett, worth $75.6 billion, up from $60.8 billion in 2016, reclaimed the No. 2 slot, after a two-year hiatus. The biggest gainer on the 2017 list is Jeff Bezos (No. 3), whose fortune increased by $27.6 billion for a total net worth of $72.8 billion. This is Bezos’ first time in the top three. Spanish clothing retailer Amancio Ortega (best known for the Zara fashion chain) drops to No. 4, despite his net worth increasing to $71.3 billion. Rounding out the top five is Facebook’s Mark Zuckerberg, worth $56 billion.

From the list:

• 2,043 billionaires (up from 1,810 in 2016) made the list, with an average net worth of $3.75 billion.

The change in the total number of billionaires – up 233 since last year – was the biggest increase in 31 years.

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• The total combined net worth of this year’s billionaires was $7.67 trillion, up from $6.48 trillion last year.

• 1,371 members were self-made billionaires. 238 inherited their wealth; another 434 inherited at least a portion but are still growing it.

For the full list, please visit www.forbes.com/billionaires.

2017

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Rank 2017 Net Worth ($B) Name Origin Of Wealth Residence State

17 33.8 Alice Walton Wal-Mart Texas

38 20.4 Michael Dell Dell computers Texas

127 10.4 Andrew Beal banks, real estate Texas

194 7.2 Richard Kinder pipelines Texas

234 6.2 Robert Rowling investments Texas

261 5.7 Dannine Avara pipelines Texas

261 5.7 Scott Duncan pipelines Texas

261 5.7 Milane Frantz pipelines Texas

261 5.7 Randa Williams pipelines Texas

294 5.3 Trevor Rees-Jones oil & gas Texas

303 5.2 Jerry Jones Dallas Cowboys Texas

339 4.8 Ray Lee Hunt oil, real estate Texas

367 4.5 Kelcy Warren pipelines Texas

402 4.3 Jeffery Hildebrand oil Texas

441 4 Robert Bass oil, investments Texas

441 4 H. Ross Perot Sr computer services, real estate Texas

522 3.6 Dan Friedkin Toyota dealerships Texas

544 3.5 Robert McNair energy, sports Texas

564 3.4 Mark Cuban online media Texas

630 3.1 John Paul DeJoria hair products, tequila Texas

660 3 John Arnold hedge funds Texas

660 3 Edward Bass oil, investments Texas

693 2.9 Lee Bass oil, investments Texas

693 2.9 Tilman Fertitta restaurants, casinos Texas

717 2.8 Sid Bass oil, investments Texas

745 2.7 Ray Davis pipelines Texas

814 2.5 George Bishop oil & gas Texas

814 2.5 David Bonderman private equity Texas

814 2.5 Robert Smith private equity Texas

896 2.3 Gerald Ford banking Texas

1030 2 W. Herbert Hunt oil Texas

1098 1.9 Leslie Alexander Houston Rockets Texas

1098 1.9 Drayton McLane Jr Wal-Mart, logistics Texas

1234 1.7 Todd Wagner online media Texas

1290 1.6 David Booth mutual funds Texas

1290 1.6 Christopher Goldsbury salsa Texas

1290 1.6 Timothy Headington oil & gas, investments Texas

1290 1.6 Thai Lee IT provider Texas

1290 1.6 Billy Joe (Red) McCombs real estate, oil, cars Texas

1290 1.6 H. Ross Perot Jr real estate Texas

1290 1.6 Fayez Sarofim money management Texas

1376 1.5 Rodney Lewis natural gas Texas

1468 1.4 Paul Foster oil refining Texas

1468 1.4 Kenny Troutt telecom Texas

1567 1.3 James Leininger medical products Texas

1567 1.3 Bryan Sheffield oil & gas Texas

1567 1.3 Dan Wilks natural gas Texas

1567 1.3 Farris Wilks natural gas Texas

1678 1.2 Darwin Deason Xerox Texas

1795 1.1 Brian Sheth investments Texas

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