The 10 richest Americans
Despite the stalled economy, America's richest continue to get richer. As a group, the wealthiest 400 are worth $1.5 trillion, roughly the GDP of Canada.
By Luisa Kroll and Kerry A. Dolan, Forbes.com
The 400 richest Americans saw their collective wealth grow by 12% over the past year, meaning the nation's wealthiest slightly outperformed the Standard & Poor's 500 Index ($INX) over the period.
s the nation's richest person for the 18th consecutive year; the last time he didn't rank No. 1 was 1993, when his good friend Warren Buffett eclipsed him. Buffett's fortune tumbled by $6 billion this year, making him the biggest loser among the nation's most wealthy. Buffett gave away $3.3 billion, and he was pinched by a 10% decline in the value of Berkshire Hathaway (BRK.A) stock.
This year's headlines may belong to a younger group of entrepreneurs marching their way up the ranks, particularly those who are impacting social behavior online. Leading the pack is Facebook co-founder Mark Zuckerberg, who$10.6 billion to his fortune, making him the year's biggest gainer and pushing him into the top 20 for the first time, with a net worth of $17.5 billion. Zuckerberg came in one notch ahead of Google (GOOG) co-founders Sergey Brin and Larry Page, who added $1.7 billion apiece to their fortunes but slipped five spots in the rankings and are tied at No. 15.
Notable newcomers include Bob Stiller of s (GMCR) and TheGroup's Bob Parsons. Among those returning to the list this year are Howard Schultz of Starbucks (SBUX) and Dan Gilbert, the chairman and founder of Quicken Loans.
Rank: 4
Net worth: $25 billion
Age: 75
Source of wealth: Koch Industries (manufacturing)Residence: Wichita, Kan.
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Rank: 2
Net worth: $39 billion
Age: 81
Source of wealth: Berkshire Hathaway
Residence: Omaha, Neb.
* Go to the Buffett profile on Forbes.com
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* Bing: Warren Buffett
Rank: 5
Net worth: $25 billion
Age: 71
Source of wealth: Koch Industries
Residence:
* Go to the David Koch profile on Forbes.com
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* Bing: David Koch
Rank: 10
Net worth: $20.9 billion
Age: 61
Source of wealth:
Residence: Millsap, Texas
* Go to the Alice Walton profile on Forbes.com
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* Bing: Alice Walton
Rank: 6
Net worth: $24.5 billion
Age: 56
Source of wealth: Wal-Mart Stores (WMT)
Residence:, Wyo.
* Go to the Christy Walton profile on Forbes.com
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Rank: 3
Net worth: $33 billion
Age: 67
Source of wealth: Oracle (ORCL)
Residence: Redwood City, Calif.
* Go to the Ellison profile on Forbes.com
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* Bing: Larry Ellison
Rank: 1
Net worth: $59 billion
Age: 55
Source of wealth:(MSFT)
(Microsoft publishes MSN Money)
Residence: Medina, Wash.
* Go to the Gates profile on Forbes.com
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* Bing: Bill Gates
Rank: 8
Net worth: $21.5 billion
Age: 78
Source of wealth: Casinos
Residence: Las Vegas
* Go to the Adelson profile on Forbes.com
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* Bing: Sheldon Adelson
Rank: 9
Net worth: $21.1 billion
Age: 63
Source of wealth: Wal-Mart
Residence: Bentonville, Ark.
* Go to the Jim Walton profile on Forbes.com
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George Soros
Rank: 7
Net worth: $22 billion
Age: 81
Source of wealth: Hedge funds
Residence: Katonah, N.Y.
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* Bing: George Soros
