Top 10 Richest Heirs in The World Today

The 2,781 people who will be billionaires worldwide in 2024 make up the world's richest people, and their combined fortune will be close to $12.8 trillion. The number of billionaires in the world increased by 4% in 2024. A total of $5 trillion is the worth of the 934 heirs. The majority of the wealthiest individuals on the planet are classified as self-made, which means they created their own wealth instead of obtaining it from a spouse or family member.

The top ten richest heirs in the world are revealed in this article, along with information about their outstanding achievements, prowess as entrepreneurs, and significant impact on the world economy. Forbes is the source of this ranked list.

Top 10 of The World's Richest Heirs in 2024

Top 10 of The World's Richest Heirs in 2024 (Forbes 2024)

10. John Mars

Net worth: $38.5 Billion

Source: Candy, pet food

In 1919, Grandfather Frank Mars began producing chocolates in his Tacoma, Washington, kitchen. After taking control, Forrest Sr.'s father, Milky Way, Snickers, and Three Musketeers, became the staples of the Mars candy bar line thanks to their malt flavor nougat. Add Skittles, Twix, and M&Ms. Uncle Ben's Rice and Whiskas and Pedigree pet food were added. Today, Mars is the biggest candy company in the country. $18 billion in sales. Ethel's Chocolate Lounges were introduced this year; clients can sample the brand-new Ethel chocolate line at Chicago boutiques.

Following the death of their father in 1999, John Mars and his siblings Jacqueline and Forrest Jr. (d. 2016) inherited shares in the candy company Mars.

An estimated one-third of the business is owned by him and Jacqueline combined. The remaining property is thought to belong to his late brother Forrest Jr.'s four daughters.

Frank, John's grandfather, started the $45 billion (sales) company in 1911.

Along with food (Ben's Original rice, for example) and pet care (Pedigree and Whiskas), Mars is a well-known brand.

9. Mark Mateschitz

Net worth: $39.6 Billion

Source: Red Bull

According to Forbes' most recent estimate, Dietrich Mateschitz, also known as "Didi," is worth approximately $39 billion.

Apart from his father's wealth, rumors have it that Mark also inherited several opulent properties, such as an estate in London's upscale Knightsbridge, an island in Fiji, and castles in Austria.

He had already been the owner of Thalheimer Heilwasser, a beverage company that sources water from Austrian springs for its products, for nearly four years.

Mark, an only child, was exposed to his father's business activities at a young age while attending the University of Applied Sciences Salzburg to study business.

Mark became the richest millennial (those born in the 1980s to mid-1990s) billionaire in Europe.

Mark Mateschitz was born in 1993. In 2018, he started a beverage business specializing in beer and lemonade. He and his father are shareholders of an Austrian real estate investment business.

Red Bull is a famous beverage and energy drink company. In 2021, the company achieved record revenue of 7.8 billion euros ($8 billion) after selling nearly 10 billion cans of soft drinks.

8. Giovanni Ferrero

Net worth: $43.8 Billion

Source: Nutella, chocolates

Giovanni Ferrero is the powerful figure behind the world's second largest confectionery empire - Ferrero Group and is also the richest person in Italy with assets of 32 billion USD.

Giovanni Ferrero is the youngest son of Michele Ferrero, founder of Ferrero Group. According to Bloomberg, he was born in 1964 in Italy and attended a private school in Belgium. He also studied marketing at Lebanon Valley College in Annville, Pennsylvania (USA), according to the National Italian American Foundation (NIAF).

After graduating, Giovanni and his father and brother ran the family company, with the first position at the Tic Tac chocolate candy manufacturing branch in Belgium, according to Forbes. The Ferrero family's empire began with a chocolate shop in Alba, Italy in 1946, the predecessor of the Ferrero Group. After more than 70 years, Ferrero Group has become the second largest confectionery company in the world with revenue of 11.9 billion USD in the fiscal year to August 2018.

7. Julia Koch

Net worth: $64.3 Billion

Source: Koch Industries

One of the wealthiest women in the world, Julia Margaret Flesher Koch is an American socialite and philanthropist. Her late husband David Koch left her a fortune, which he passed away in 2019.

Julia Koch and their three children, David Jr., Mary Julia, and John Mark, received 42% of Koch Industries following David Koch's passing in August 2019. She consequently appeared on Forbes' list of the richest women in the world in 2023 and was named the richest woman in the world by Bloomberg.

Koch listed the 740 Park Avenue apartment for sale in 2022. According to a representative, she wanted to sell the apartment because she was spending more time at her homes in Southampton and Palm Beach. Koch is a member of Koch Industries' board of directors. She usually doesn't go for attention from the public.

6. David Thomson

Net worth: $67.8 Billion

Source: Media

At the top of the Canadian wealth ladder is David Thomson, the country's most successful tycoon, who will continue to hold this position in 2023. His wealth is evidence of his powerful position as the head of Thomson Reuters, an international conglomerate that specializes in media and information.

When the fiscal landscape of 2023 was completed, Thomson's net worth came to a little over $55.9 billion, placing him on par with many other billionaires worldwide. His net worth has been estimated to be $63 billion. An iconic force in Canadian business, the Thomson family has unmatched sway, especially in the media industry.

David Thomson is the head of a publishing and media empire that his grandfather Roy Thomson founded, leaving a lasting legacy. The largest asset in their portfolio is a massive hoard of more than 320 million shares of Thomson Reuters, a company in which Thomson serves as chairman.

The family also proudly owns the Toronto-based Globe and Mail newspaper and has a stake in the telecommunications giant Bell Canada, further solidifying their financial dominance. The legacy of Thomson, deeply ingrained in Canadian business history, keeps growing thanks to its significant and well-chosen holdings.

Learn More: Top 10 Richest Families in the World with Net Worth

5. Alice Walton

Net worth: $72.3 Billion

Source: Walmart

American Alice Louise Walton is the heir apparent to the Walmart empire. She possessed Walmart shares valued at over US$11 billion as of September 2016.

Walton was instrumental in the creation of the Northwest Arkansas Regional Airport, which opened its doors in 1998, and he was the first person to chair the Northwest Arkansas Council. The Northwest Arkansas Council, a group of business and civic leaders, saw the need for the $109 million regional airport in their region of the state at the time. Walton contributed the first $15 million toward the building project. She underwrote a $79.5 million bond through her company, Llama Company. Walton's contributions to the airport's establishment were acknowledged by the Northwest Arkansas Regional Airport Authority, which gave the terminal the name Alice L. Walton Terminal Building.

Following the closure of Llama Co. in the late 1990s, Walton relocated to Walton's Rocking W Ranch in Millsap, Texas, in 1998. She loved horses and was renowned for her ability to predict which 2-month-olds would become champion cutters. In 2015, Walton put the farm up for sale and relocated to Fort Worth, Texas, citing her need to concentrate on her founding and now-opening Crystal Bridges Museum of American Art in Bentonville, Arkansas.

4. Rob Walton

Net worth: $77.4 Billion

Source: Walmart

The billionaire American Samuel Robson Walton is the heir apparent to the riches of Walmart, the biggest retailer in the world. He was Walmart's chairman from 1992 to 2015 and is the eldest son of Helen and Sam Walton. The Denver Broncos of the National Football League (NFL) are primarily owned by him as well.

He moved to Walmart as a senior vice president in 1978 after leaving Tulsa, and he was named vice chairman in 1982. Two days after his father's passing, on April 7, 1992, he was appointed chairman of the board of directors. Between 2008 and 2013, he and his siblings made a pledge of approximately $2 billion to the Walton Family Foundation.

On June 7, 2022, an ownership group under Walton entered into an agreement to purchase the Denver Broncos from the estate of Pat Bowlen for $4.65 billion, setting a record for the most expensive sale of a sports franchise in history, subject to approval from the NFL's finance committee and a 3/4 majority of the NFL ownership group. The majority of Walton's daily power was given to his son-in-law, Walmart chairman Greg Penner, who succeeded him as the company's CEO and public face.

3. Jim Walton

Net worth: $78.4 Billion

Source: Walmart

Jim Walton, youngest son of Walmart founder Sam Walton

American businessman James Carr Walton is the current heir apparent to the wealth of Walmart, the biggest retailer in the world. He is Sam Walton's youngest son.

He started working for Walmart in 1972 and participated in its real estate transactions. In 1975, following four years of service, he became president of the family-owned Walton Enterprises. Walton took John's place on the Wal-Mart board of directors on September 28, 2005, the day his brother John passed away. He currently serves on the committees for finance and strategic planning.

Prior to becoming Chairman of both the family-owned Arvest Bank and the newspaper company Community Publishers Inc., which Jim Walton founded after his father Sam Walton bought the local newspaper the Benton County Daily Record, he served as CEO of the family-owned Arvest Bank. Both businesses are based in Arkansas, Missouri, and Oklahoma. Together with his siblings, he made a $2 billion pledge to the Walton Family Foundation between 2008 and 2013. Walton was said to own more than 152 million Walmart shares in September 2016, valued at more than $11 billion (US).

2. Francoise Bettencourt Meyers

Francoise Bettencourt Meyers

Net worth: $79.5 Billion

Source: L'Oreal

The richest woman in the world, Françoise Bettencourt Meyers, is a French businesswoman, philanthropist, writer, pianist, and billionaire heiress. She is the sole child and the granddaughter of Eugène Schueller, the founder of L'Oréal, and the heiress of Liliane Bettencourt. Following the death of her mother in September 2017, her wealth increased threefold thanks to investments made through Tethys Invest, the family holding company, and the high stock market value of L'Oréal shares.

She began legal action against François-Marie Banier in 2008 for allegedly robbing her mother of her money and for declaring her mentally incompetent. Bettencourt Meyers declared in December 2010 that she and Banier had reached an out-of-court settlement.

With a net worth of approximately $39.5 billion at the time of her mother's death in September 2017, Bettencourt Meyers is among the world's richest 20 individuals.

1. Mukesh Ambani

Net worth: $116 Billion

Source: Diversified

An Indian billionaire businessman is named Mukesh Dhirubhai Ambani. Reliance Industries (RIL), the most valuable company in India based on market value and a Fortune Global 500 company, has him as its chairman and managing director. As of November 29, 2022, Ambani's estimated net worth was US$93.8 billion, making him the eighth richest person in the world and the second richest in Asia, behind Gautam Adani, according to Forbes and Bloomberg Billionaires Index.

Mukesh Dhirubhai Ambani was born on April 19, 1957, in the Gujarati Hindu family of Dhirubhai and Kokilaben Ambani in the British Crown colony of Aden (modern-day Yemen). He has two sisters, Dipti Dattaraj Salgaonkar and Nina Bhadrashyam Kothari, and a younger brother, Anil Ambani.

After moving to India, the family's financial situation somewhat improved, but Ambani continued to live in a communal community, take public transit, and never get an allowance.

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