Top Richest Man On Earth: Bill Gates

Top Richest Man On Earth: Bill Gates: Wealth-X maintains a database of dossiers on more than 110,000 ultra-high-net-worth people, using a proprietary valuation model that takes into account each person's assets, then adjusts estimated net worth to account for currency-exchange rates, local taxes, savings rates, investment performance, and other factors.  Its latest ranking of the world's billionaires found that 29 of the top 50 hail from the US and nearly a quarter made their fortunes in tech. To crack this list, you'd need to have a net worth of at least $14.3 billion.  And for the most part these people weren't born with a silver spoon. More than two-thirds are completely self-made, having built some of the most powerful companies, including Amazon, Berkshire Hathaway, Google, Nike, and Oracle. From tech moguls and retail giants to heirs and heiresses, here are the billionaires with the deepest pockets around the globe.

Bill Gates Net worth: $87.4 billion Age: 60 Country: US Industry: Tech Source of wealth: Self-made; Microsoft At just 20, Bill Gates co founded Microsoft with his childhood friend Paul Allen. Months before his 31st birthday, the company went public, making Gates a billionaire. He served as CEO of the software titan until 2000 and was its chairman and largest shareholder until 2014. Though he still sits on the company's board, Gates whose net worth sits a league above the rest at $87.4 billion  is no longer actively involved in Microsoft. Gates is not only the richest man in the world, But he's also the most generous. Since 1999, Gates and his wife have helmed the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, one of the most powerful charities in the world. The foundation  which controls an endowment of more than $40 billion  aims to lift millions of people out of poverty, with a heavy focus on eliminating HIV, malaria, and other infectious diseases. The couple is also working on a plan to bring mobile banking to the 2 billion adults who don't have a bank account. Plus, Gates recently invested alongside Jeff Bozos in Grail, the company that's creating a blood test to detect every form of cancer.