Al Habtoor is still making plenty of business moves to promote even more wealth and has notably become interested in a $3 billion Central European real estate investment. This European interest dovetails with Al Habtoor’s interest in international affairs. Al Futtaim’s company is now run by his son, Omar, but Al Futtaim still has a huge role in the company.
In 2023, DIFC launched the first Family Wealth Centre of its kind in the world to grow global family wealth and support family businesses. Thousands of millionaires from the Indian Subcontinent, Russia, Europe and other South Asian and Southeast Asian countries have made the UAE their home. All these family-owned businesses and individuals migrated to Dubai for its safety and security, one of the lowest taxes, zero personal income tax, world-class health facilities and educational institutes among others. Abdulla bin Ahmad Al Ghurair is one of the oldest billionaires on this list, so he has worked for decades to build his business and make an impact on many industries. His wealth comes from diversified sources, so he has an impact on many industries.
Ravi Pillai Net Worth – $4.2 Billion
Sunny Varkey is the founder and chairman of GEMS Education, the management firm that is known for its global advisory and education. This is the largest organisation that is private for kindergarten to 12 standard schools. More than 52 schools are established under this organisation in 4 countries. It also wouldn’t hurt to have been born into wealth; however, the greatest fortunes on this list started as good ideas that people with creativity, drive, and connections used to build some of the world’s largest companies. Alongside a 17% jump in wealth held by the world’s billionaires, EMEA’s billionaire wealth has also grown by 17% to $3.7 trillion, with the number of billionaires increasing by 70 to 728.
Built in the early 2000s by state-owned developer Nakheel, the project required $12 billion and 4.2 billion cubic feet of sand to complete. It’s home to Ambani’s properties as well as Russian oligarchs and celebrities including soccer legend David Beckham and Bollywood star Shah Rukh Khan. The nearby Jumeirah Islands—a set of interconnected isles built atop an artificial salt water lake—are home to Telegram founder Pavel Durov, who rents a 15,000-square-foot home for about $1 million a year.
Hussain Sajwani is the founder and chairman of DAMAC Properties – a real estate development company. He was awarded the Arabian Business Real Estate Award along with the title of the Real Estate Legend. DAMAC Properties is counted among the richest man in dubai leading companies of real estate which have directed the development of multiple large scale projects, and luxurious property across Europe and UAE. With so much of their wealth in publicly traded stocks, the net worth of the richest fluctuates along with the market valuations of the companies they own.
Revealed: These are UAE’s 19 richest people, and control Dh206b wealth
Sunny Varkey is an Indian-born, Dubai-based education entrepreneur, billionaire, and philanthropist. He is the executive chairman and founder of the Global advisory and Educational Management firm, GEMS Education, which is an international education company. Hussain Sahwani is an Emirati billionaire businessman and the CEO of DAMAC Properties, which is a real estate development company. In the United Arab Emirates, the top 1% holds more than half of the wealth in the whole country, and although the wealthiest emirate is Abu Dhabi, Dubai also has a lot of wealth and is a thriving tourism and business center in the UAE. Accordingly, the wealthy in Dubai have tons of wealth and there are multiple billionaires and even multi-billionaires who reflect the wealth of Dubai and the industries that make its economy so robust.
Also managing director and vice-chairman of the healthcare and education investment company, Amanat Holdings. Bavaguthu Raghuram Shetty, the founder and acquirer of the United Arab Emirates companies accommodating Abu-Dhabi based NMC Health, BRS Ventures, Neopharma and Finablr. B.R Shetty is an Indian-born businessman who is counted among the top businessmen in Dubai. However, many of these billionaire family businesses are home-grown who took advantage of the local business-friendly legislation and environment and made their fortunes by setting up their conglomerates. Hussain Sajwani is a self-made man who built his company in the real estate industry. It’s since grown into one of the leading companies in the sector, having orchestrated the development of multiple large-scale, luxury properties and projects across both Europe and the UAE.
- He holds the Al Futtaim Group, a partnership involved in automotive, insurance, and real estate.
- He eventually dropped out of school and began his career as a taxi driver.
- By the records, he pledged to The Giving Pledge that he would donate half of his money to philanthropic issues throughout his life.
How We Compiled the List
In 1973, he joined the electronics company Ampex, where he met future partners Ed Oates and Bob Miner. Three years later, Ellison moved to Precision Instruments, serving as the company’s vice president of research and development. A surge in global billionaire emigration has benefited the UAE, which has rapidly become one of the chosen countries in the great wealth transfer, according to UBS. Allen Lee is a Toronto-based freelance writer who studied business in school but has since turned to other pursuits. Currently, Lee is practicing the smidgen of Chinese that he picked up while visiting the Chinese mainland in hopes of someday being able to read certain historical texts in their original language. It is also behind the construction of the Burj Khalifa’s exterior cladding, the world’s tallest building.
With the billionaire population now ageing, they are looking beyond their borders as their families grow. Within the Middle East and Africa region, UAE billionaires’ aggregate wealth rose by 39.5% to $138.7 billion, with the number of billionaires growing to 18 in 2024, the Swiss banks said in a report. He has investments in real estate projects, car distribution, leisure, and entertainment. Since its establishment, MAF has grown to be one of the largest firms in the United Arab Emirates.
According to Forbes, the company generated $8.8 billion in revenues and $600 million in profits in 2017, making it easy to see how Al Futtaim and his family acquired his billionaire status. In addition to holding the franchise right to IKEA stores in UAE, Qatar, Egypt, and Oman, the company is also the exclusive distributor of several major car brands, including Toyota, Lexus, and Hino in the UAE. Emirati billionaire Abdulla Al Futtaim earned his billions as the owner of Al-Futtaim Group, a large conglomerate that operates across the automotive, electronics, insurance, services, real estate, and retail sectors. Globally, there are 2,470 billionaires from 67 countries and from 1,931 companies.