In this article, we will be taking a look at the 25 richest women in the world. To skip our detailed analysis of the trends and dynamics of women’s businesses, head directly to see the 5 Richest Women in the World.
Women’s Wealth
A lot of the richest people in the world have had to lose their wealth in 2022. According to Forbes World’s Richest List 2023, the total number of billionaires dropped from 2,668 in 2022 to 2,640 in 2023. Overall, the world’s billionaires have lost $500 billion of net worth from $12.7 trillion in March 2022 to $12.2 trillion in March 2023. An interesting fact to note is that the number of female billionaires is on the rise. Among the top richest people in the world, there are 337 women billionaires, up from 327 in 2022.
Women have started to step up and take the initiative of starting their businesses. As we mentioned earlier, almost half of all women-owned businesses are from three sectors that include healthcare and social assistance, beauty and pet care, and scientific and technical services. Women-owned businesses in the U.S. have performed significantly well. First Round Capital claims that the companies it invested in with female founders outperformed all-male founding companies by 63%. Additionally, as we discussed previously, Kauffman Fellows found women-led teams produced 35% better return on investment compared to all-male teams.
Women Kept Under Shadows for Years
Women have faced gender discrimination for centuries in politics, in the workplace, and at home. In some countries, women are legally restricted to work in certain professions while in other economies, they are discriminated against by pay gaps. These are a few problems that have kept women under the shadow for many years. Developed economies have made major changes in their laws and frameworks to implement gender equality across all phases of life.
Feminists have been vocal about the interests of women in all fields of life. According to Pacific University, in 1848 the first wave of modern feminism took place at the Seneca Falls Convention. Elizabeth Cady Stanton introduced and drafted the Seneca Falls Declaration highlighting the ideology and political aspects of the movement. The second movement in the 1960s focused on social equality with equal rights regardless of sex. The movement continued once again in the 1990s, proving the point that women can play an equal and as important role as men.
Technology Paving Ways for Women
One of the major things that have played a big role in women’s equality is technology. Modern technology has created awareness across the globe and women have explored their potential in the best way possible. For instance, women entrepreneurs have made the best use of e-commerce. The e-commerce marketplace has allowed women to capitalize in one of the largest markets in the world.
The biggest e-commerce company, Amazon.com, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMZN), has around 9.7 million sellers worldwide, and 1.9 million are active on the platform. On June 19, SellerApp shared the Amazon.com seller statistics showing that women account for 33% of the retailer’s sellers, which is a sublime development for women entrepreneurs.
Companies Led by Female CEOs
We have entered a new era as more than 10% of women now lead Fortune 500 companies. The Fortune 500 ranks the largest U.S. public companies by revenue. These companies accumulate around $18 trillion in revenue, representing more than two-thirds of the U.S. GDP. For many decades, the big companies were dominated by male executives. Now we have 53 female CEOs leading Fortune 500 companies, which enlightens gender diversity in executive leadership to another level. Women now have a more important role to play as executives, making massive decisions at the top level.
Some of the Fortune 500 companies which are led by female CEOs include Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMD), CVS Health Corp. (NYSE:CVS), General Motors Co. (NYSE:GM), Walgreens Boots Alliance Inc. (NASDAQ:WBA), and Elevance Health Inc. (NYSE:ELV). These five Fortune 500 companies are led by CEOs Lisa Su, Karen Lynch, Mary Barra, Rosalind Brewer, and Gail Koziara Boudreaux, respectively. The female CEOs are putting in a great effort to take these companies to new heights. Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMD) is one of the largest companies on the Fortune 500 list. On June 14, Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMD) unveiled its next-generation chip called MI-300 at its product reveal event, which is being considered a potential alternative to NVIDIA Corp. (NASDAQ:NVDA)’s AI chips. The company is using AI to be its next big tool for GPUs, CPUs, and adaptive computing solutions. The CEO of Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMD), Lisa Su, during the launch event, highlighted AI as “AMD’s largest and most strategic long term growth opportunity.” Shortly after the event, Lisa Su, appeared in an interview on CNBC to discuss the development of their new AI chip, M1-300. AMD has entered into a new phase of chipmaking with the announcement of its newest generation chip. Su added that everyone is talking about Chatgpt and large language models, and MI-300 is designed for these use cases. Here are some of the comments from Su:
“AI is the defining megatrend for the technology right now. Like, everybody is talking about AI, we have been working on this roadmap for many many years. MI-300 is our newest generation chip and frankly, it’s incredible and I mean, the amount of technology we have on this, a 153 billion transistors. Our customers are super excited about this and we are working closely with them. We will sample in the third quarter and will be in production by the end of the year.
What we see is there is a tremendous demand for GPUs in AI space, for both training and inference. We work with all of the largest cloud manufacturers and many of the largest enterprise guys. So, the key is to get these products to market as fast as possible. It is an incredible time for technology. AI has kinda changed the way we perceive what we’re doing in every industry and every market for all of our productivity and business applications.
We have developed a really comprehensive software capability that is optimized for hardware. We call that the ROCm ecosystem, but on top of that we’ve all these folks in the market that are really developing these frameworks, and the purpose of these frameworks is actually to make it fairly easy and transparent to move different hardware ecosystems.”
According to Su, the total addressable market for AI GPUs is around $30 billion right now and it is going to grow more than 50% each year over the next three to four years. “We see like $150 billion by the time we get to 2027,” added Su.
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Our Methodology
To find the list of the 25 richest women in the world, we took the data from Forbes’ Real-time Billionaire List. We also cross-checked the list with Bloomberg Billionaires Index. We then narrowed down our list to women that had the highest net worth. The list is ranked in ascending order of the aforementioned metric. Here is the list of the 25 richest women in the world.
25 Richest Women in the World
25. Victoria Mars
Net Worth: $9.9 Billion
Victoria Mars is an American billionaire, who is a former chairwoman of her family business Mars, Incorporated. Currently, Victoria is a chair of Salzburg Global Seminar, a non-profit organization. Victoria along with her sisters owns an 8% inherited stake in the company. Victoria’s great-grandfather Frank Mars incorporated the candy business back in 1911. With a net worth of $9.9 billion, Victoria Mars is the joint-richest woman in the world along with her three sisters including Pamela Mars, Valerie Mars, and Marijke Mars.
Female business women are leading some of the top Fortune 500 companies including Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMD), CVS Health Corp. (NYSE:CVS), General Motors Co. (NYSE:GM), Walgreens Boots Alliance Inc. (NASDAQ:WBA), and Elevance Health Inc. (NYSE:ELV).
24. Valerie Mars
Net Worth: $9.9 Billion
Valerie Mars started working at Mars, Incorporated in 1992. Currently, Valerie is the vice president of the company’s corporate development and is also part of the board of directors. Along with her other sisters, Valerie Mars makes it to our list of the richest women in the world.
23. Pamela Mars
Net Worth: $9.9 Billion
Pamela Mars is one of the richest women in the world with a net worth equal to her other sisters including Victoria Mars, Valerie Mars, and Marijke Mars. Pamela joined Mars, Incorporated in 1986, taking over her first job. At present, she serves as an ambassador to the company’s pet care division. In 2017, Pamela acquired VCA Animal Hospital. Later in 2018, she also acquired the animal hospital chain AniCura and the U.K. vet chain Linnaeus.
22. Judy Love & Family
Net Worth: $10.2 Billion
Judy Love is the owner of the famous truck stop and convenience store chain Love’s Travel Stops & Country Stores. Judy along with her husband Tom Love founded their business in 1964. Judy runs the company with her sons Greg and Frank as her husband died on March 7, 2023. Judy Love’s net worth of $10.2 billion makes her one of the richest women in the world.
21. Christy Walton
Net Worth: $11.3 Billion
Christy Walton married John Walton who founded Walmart Inc. (NYSE:WMT). Walton was handed over one-sixth of her husband’s property after he died in 2005. Walmart’s Walton clan is one of the richest families in the world. Christy Walton lives a private life in Jackson, Wyoming, and ranks among the richest women in the world.
20. Trudy Cathy White
Net Worth: $11.4 Billion
Trudy Cathy White’s father Truett Cathy founded the fried chicken chain Chick-fil-A. Cathay White heirs the business ownership as an only daughter and serves as an ambassador at the company. Cathay White’s brothers Dan and Bubba Cathy manage the company’s operations as chairman and executive vice president, respectively. Trudy Cathy White has a net worth of $11.4 billion and is one of the richest women in the world.
19. Kwong Siu-hing
Net Worth: $13.6 Billion
Kwong Siu-hing is the biggest shareholder in Sun Hung Kai Properties, which was co-founded by her husband Kwok Tak-seng. Kwong served the company as chairman from 2008 to 2011. Kwong Siu-hing with a net worth of $13.6 billion makes it to the list of the richest women in the world.
18. Laurene Powell Jobs & Family
Net Worth: $14.2 Billion
Laurene Powell Jobs inherited her fortune from her late husband Steve Jobs, Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL)’s co-founder. In 2021, Powell Jobs launched the Waverley Street Foundation to support organizations fighting against climate change. In 2017, Powell Jobs acquired The Atlantic and has invested in several media outlets including Axios, ProPublica, and The Athletic. Laurene Powell Jobs is one of the most active female billionaires and the richest woman in the world.
17. Charlene de Carvalho-Heineken & Family
Net Worth: $15.1 Billion
Charlene de Carvalho-Heineken has almost a 23% stake in famous beer producer Heineken. In 2002, Carvalho-Heineken inherited a stake in the company from her father and CEO of the company, Freddy Heineken. Carvalho-Heineken is also part of Heineken’s board. Owning the beer giant makes Charlene de Carvalho-Heineken one of the richest women in the world.
16. Diane Hendricks
Net Worth: $16.1 Billion
In 1982, Diane Hendricks co-founded ABC Supply along with her late husband, Ken Hendricks. Since her husband died in 2007, Diane continues to chair the company. Diane led the company to make the two biggest acquisitions in ABC’s history, buying rival Bradco in 2010 and building materials distributor L&W Supply in 2016. Diane Hendricks has a net worth of $16.1 billion and ranks among the richest women in the world.
15. Renata Kellnerova & Family
Net Worth: $16.9 Billion
Renata Kellnerova was married to the richest person in the Czech Republic, Petr Kellner, at the time. After Kellner’s passing in March 2021, Kellnerova was handed over to the PFF Group, the business that offers financial, media, and real estate services. She also chairs The Kellner Family Foundation, which looks after education. Renata Kellnerova with family assets worth $16.9 billion ranks among the richest women in the world.
14. Beate Heister
Net Worth: $17.8 Billion
Beate Heister is a heiress to the Aldi retail fortune. Hesiter’s fortune comes from her family business which her father, Karl Albrecht Sr., expanded after the ownership split between him and his brother, Theo Sr. With a net worth of $17.8 billion, Beate Heister is one of the richest women in the world.
13. Vicky Safra & Family
Net Worth: $18.4 Billion
Vicky Safra inherited her husband Joseph Safra’s fortune along with her four children. Owning the Safra banking empire, Vicky Safra has a net worth of $18.4 billion and ranks among the richest women in the world.
12. Savitri Jindal & Family
Net Worth: $20.3 Billion
Savitri Jindal’s net worth is $20.3 billion, thanks to her stake in the Jindal Group which Savitri inherited from her husband Om Prakash Jindal. Jindal Group specializes in steel, cement, power, and infrastructure. Savitri chairs the company while her sons Sajjan Jindal and Naveen Jindal manage JSW Steel and Jindal Steel & Power, respectively. Savitri Jindal makes it to the list of the richest women in the world.
11. Abigail Johnson
Net Worth: $22.9 Billion
Abigail Johnson took over her father’s mutual fund business Fidelity Investments. Johnson has served the company as CEO since 2014. Johnson first started at Fidelity during summers through college and later joined as an analyst in 1988 after completing her MBA from Harvard. With an estimated 24.5% stake in the company, Abigail Johnson is one of the richest women in the world.
10. Iris Fontbona & Family
Net Worth: $24.9 Billion
Iris Fontbona controls Antofagasta Plc (LON:ANTO), which trades on the London Stock Exchange. Fontbona is the widow of Andrónico Luksic, who left behind the company to Fontbona and his children. Fontbona, along with running Antofagasta Plc, owns a majority stake in Quiñenco, which specializes in banking, beer, and manufacturing. Iris Fontbona has a net worth of $24.9 billion, which makes her one of the richest women in the world.
9. Susanne Klatten
Net Worth: $25.8 Billion
Susanne Klatten is one of the richest women in the world, thanks to her 19% stake in BMW. Klatten is the daughter of famous German industrialist Herbert Quandt who saved BMW from bankruptcy. In addition, Klatten has transformed her grandfather’s Altana AG into a top-level specialty chemical corporation and she is the sole owner of the company. She also had stakes in Entrust, a company that provides digital identity and data security. Being an active businesswoman, Susanne Klatten is one of the richest women in the world.
8. Gina Rinehart
Net Worth: $27.5 Billion
Gina Rinehart is Australia’s richest person with a net worth of around $27.5 billion. Rinehart is the daughter of iron-ore explorer Lang Hancock and she has taken the iron-ore business to the next level. Rinehart has investments in the gas sector and rare earth minerals. Such massive wealth with a diversified portfolio makes Gina Rinehart one of the richest women in the world.
7. Rafaela Aponte-Diamant
Net Worth: $30.8 Billion
Rafaela Aponte-Diamant owns 50% stakes in the world’s largest shipping line, the Mediterranean Shipping Company. Rafaela’s husband Gianluigi Aponte founded the company in 1970 and also has a 50% stake in it. MSC is led by Gianluigi who is the executive chairman of MSC and Rafaela looks after the decoration operations for MSC Cruises. Rafaela Aponte-Diamant with a net worth of $30.8 billion ranks among the richest women in the world.
6. MacKenzie Scott
Net Worth: $34.7 Billion
MacKenzie Scott’s divorce from Jeff Bezos in 2019 gave her a 4% stake in Amazon, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMZN). Scott is also a philanthropist and author, and lives a simple lifestyle. With a net worth of around $34.7 billion, MacKenzie Scott is one of the richest women in the world.
Some of the most prominent companies led by female CEOs include Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMD), CVS Health Corp. (NYSE:CVS), General Motors Co. (NYSE:GM), Walgreens Boots Alliance Inc. (NASDAQ:WBA), and Elevance Health Inc. (NYSE:ELV).
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Disclosure: None. 25 Richest Women in the World is originally published on Insider Monkey.