A look at the World's billionaires: The planet now has 2,640 billionaires

After years of jockeying for the top spot, Bernard Arnault leads the World’s Billionaires list—the first time a French citizen has made it to No 1. Americans have topped the ranks most often (24 years), followed by citizens of Japan (eight times) and Mexico (four) Image: Jamel Toppin for Forbes

Falling stocks, wounded unicorns and rising interest rates translated into a tough year for the world’s wealthiest. Globally, we counted 2,640 ten-figure fortunes, down from 2,668 last year. Altogether, the planet’s billionaires are now worth $12.2 trillion, down from $12.7 trillion in March 2022.

Last year’s No 1, Elon Musk, suffered a largely self-inflicted wound when he bought Twitter in a $44 billion deal last October, a misadventure compounded by plummeting shares in Tesla. Musk is worth some $180 billion today, down from $219 billion last year. His fall makes way for a new richest person in the world: Luxury goods titan Bernard Arnault of France, worth $211 billion.

There are 150 newcomers to this year’s ranking, including fashion designer Tom Ford and golf great Tiger Woods. Women are still dramatically underrepresented, at just 13 percent of the list, up from 12 percent a year ago. The US once again has more billionaires than any other country, with 736, followed by China (including Hong Kong and Macau) with 562. To calculate net worths, we used stock prices and exchange rates from March 10, 2023.

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For the full list of billionaires and our methodology, please see forbes.com/billionaires