As part of our contributions to celebrating the feats of women in socio-economic development of the world, we will present to you the five richest women in the globe.
Francoise Bettencourt Meyers
She was born on July 10, 1953, in Neuilly-sur-Seine, France, and went to a Catholic School in her early learning years. Bettencourt inherited one-third of L’Oréal from her mother in 2017 when she died, further propelling her worth.
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At college, she majored in International Jewish-Christian relations and Greek mythology.
She went on to write two books, a five-volume study of the Bible in 2008, a genealogy of the Greek gods, and a book about hearing and deafness in 2020.
She is estimated to have a net worth of about US$80.5 billion. What sets her apart the most from other billionaires, especially old, male and white billionaires, is she is an introvert who loves reading literature and history, or playing the piano, rather than going out to fancy parties with her socialite parents.
Sales amounted to 38.26 billion euros at December 31, 2022. At the top of this conglomerate sits Bettencourt Meyers, who holds the biggest shares.
Today, a part of her legacy includes the Bettencourt Schueller Foundation, a charity she co-founded that issues grant for research purposes.
Julia Koch
Koch was born on April 12, 1962, in Des Moine, Iowa, to parents with a furniture store called Flesher’s. She attended the University of Central Arkansas. Her net worth is at US$59 billion
Many believed that Julia Koch is the luckiest richest women in the world.
In 1991, she agreed to go on a blind date with David Koch, referred to as the “goofy playboy”, a fortunate move amounting to a 42 percent stake in the Koch Industries for her and her three children.
She managed to get a job as an assistant to fashion designer Adolfo, who dressed the rich and famous, including First Lady Nancy Reagan.
Alice Walton
Walton was born on October 7, 1949, in Bentonville, Arkansas, where she grew up there with her three brothers. She is the daughter of Sam Walton, the founder of Walmart, the third richest woman in the world.
She attended a public school and went on to Trinity University in San Antonia, Texas, to pursue a BA in Economics and Finance.
After graduating, she worked at a Walmart store as a buyer of children’s clothes. She then sought to begin her career in finance by taking on the role of equity analyst and money manager at First Commerce Corporation.
She also had a short stint at brokerage firm EF Hutton.
She eventually established the Crystal Bridges Museum of American Art in her hometown as a dedication to local art and artists.
Her net worth is at US$56.7 billion.
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Jacqueline Mars
Mars was born on October 10, 1939, in Washington to Forrest Mars, Sr. and Audrey Mars. She had a relatively normal childhood alongside both her older brothers.
Jacqueline started her schooling years at Miss Hall’s School in Pittsfield, Massachusetts.
Once she graduated from there, she attended a women’s liberal art college, Bryn Mawr College, where she pursued a degree in anthropology in 1961.
She inherited the billion-dollar Skittles, Snickers or M&M’s, company s, and she is worth US$38.3 billion today.
In 1982, she joined the family company as president, and in 1999, Mars and her brothers took over completely once their father passed.
Mars ended up working here for 20 years, driving the company’s expansion while they strategically took over other pet brands.
Despite being handed a golden ticket at birth, Mars, now 84, has always placed importance on charity.
Miriam Adelson
Miriam was born in Tel Aviv, Israel to parents who were forced to flee Poland because of the Jewish persecution taking place.
She grew up under the dark shadow of the holocaust, recalling her mother’s tears at the loss of her family who perished at concentration camps.
Despite trying times that had no doubts left Miriam in turmoil, she finished high school at the Hebrew Reali School of Haifa.
Miriam then enrolled at the Hebrew University of Jerusalem, pursuing a Bachelor of Science in Microbiology and Genetics.
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She attended Tel Aviv University to study medicine, where she graduated with an MD magna cum laude from the Sackler Medical School.
She also attended Rockefeller University in New York on an exchange programme focused on treating drug addiction, which later became her speciality.
Her estimated net worth is at US$35 billion. Most of her wealth can be traced to the Las Vegas Sands Corporation, the casino business of her husband Sheldon Adelson.
In 1993, she opened a substance abuse centre and research clinic, and in 2020 founded another one with her husband Sheldon.
