The world's most successful companies have made billionaires of an impressive number of people, whether early investors, first employees, founders or family heirs. From Facebook to Google and Walmart to Red Bull, read on to discover which companies have created the most 10 and 11-figure fortunes.

Founded in 1975 by childhood friends Bill Gates and Paul Allen (pictured together in 2000) in an Albuquerque garage, tech giant Microsoft is the most valuable traded company in the world with annual revenues of $110.4 billion (£84.6bn). The business has created more than 12,000 millionaires not to mention four billionaires. Mega-philanthropist Bill Gates is the world's second-richest person with a net worth of $99.8 billion (£76.2bn) at the time of writing.

 Gates' co-founder Paul Allen passed away last year leaving a $26 billion (£19.9bn) estate. Steve Ballmer (pictured), who served as Microsoft CEO from 2000 to 2014, was the company's 30th employee and is now the 19th richest person in the world, with a whopping fortune of $45.7 billion (£34.9bn). The other Microsoft billionaire is Charles Simonyi, the computer whiz behind Word and Excel and the founder of Intentional Software, which Microsoft acquired in 2017. He is currently worth a very respectable $3.2 billion (£2.5bn).

Ruben Rausing founded liquid food packing firm Tetra Laval, the company behind the revolutionary Tetra Pak material, in Lund, Sweden in 1943. He presided over the global expansion of the company, which pulled in revenues of $15.7 billion (£12bn) in 2017/18, until his death in 1983. His descendants are now Sweden's wealthiest family with four members of the clan billionaires. The wealthiest of the lot is Hans Rausing (pictured in 1963), who has a net worth of $12 billion (£9.2bn). He sold his share in the firm to brother Gad in 1995 for an estimated $7 billion (£5.4bn).

Gad died in 2000 and ownership of the family company passed to his children Jörn, Finn and Kirsten (pictured), who continue to control Tetra Laval. Jörn, who also has a stake in British online supermarket Ocado, has a fortune of $9.4 billion (£7.2bn), while his siblings Finn and Kirsten are each worth $8.1 billion (£6.2bn).

The late Estée Lauder (pictured) founded her eponymous cosmetics company in 1946 with husband Joseph Lauder in Manhattan starting out with a face cream blended by her uncle Dr John Schotz, who was a chemist. The firm generated sales of $13.68 billion (£10.4bn) in 2018, and the Lauders' two sons and three of their grandchildren are all billionaires. Together they own 40% of the company.

The couple's eldest son Leonard is richest with $15.7 billion (£12bn). Their youngest son Ronald chairs subsidiary Clinique and is worth $4 billion (£3.1bn). And the next generation is also getting a slice of the pie. His eldest daughter Aerin (pictured left) serves as Estée Lauder's style and image director and has a fortune of $2.7 billion (£2bn), while Ronald's son William is the company chairman, and is worth $2.1 billion (£1.6bn).  Ronald's youngest daughter Jane (pictured right) is Clinique's global brand president and has a $3.5 billion (£2.7bn) fortune.

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Once dubbed “the biggest company you've never heard of”, commodities trading giant Glencore was founded in 1974 by the aptly named Marc Rich, who was already a billionaire when he established the British-Swiss firm. Rich, who died in 2013, was indicted in the US in 1983 for tax evasion and illegal dealings with Iran but later pardoned by President Bill Clinton. Current CEO Ivan Glasenberg (pictured) is the wealthiest of the five billionaires created by the company, with a fortune of  $5.8 billion ($4.4bn).

However, Glasenberg is not the only one to have benefited from the company's success. Head of zinc and lead marketing Daniel Maté has a fortune of $2.4 billion (£1.8bn). Aristotelis Mistakidis (pictured), the firm's former copper director, is worth $2.3 billion (£1.8bn), and coal boss Tor Peterson and oil head honcho Alex Beard have fortunes of $1.9 billion (£1.5bn) and $1.6 billion (£1.2bn) respectively.

The second-largest global fashion retailer after Spain's Inditex, Swedish multinational Hennes & Mauritz AB was launched in 1947 by the late Erling Persson and now counts 4,958 stores in 72 countries. Sales last year hit $22.7 billion (£17.3bn), and so far five billionaires have emerged from the firm. Erling Persson's son Stefan (pictured), the company chairman, is currently worth $17.2 billion (£13.1bn).

Stefan's sister Lottie Tham, who isn't involved in the family business, is next with a net worth of $2.4 billion (£1.8bn). His son Karl-Johan (pictured) is CEO of the firm and has personal fortune of $1.6 billion (£1.2bn). Karl-Johan's siblings are also billionaires. Sister Charlotte Söderström takes care of sponsorship at H&M and brother Tom Persson works in the movie industry. They are also worth $1.6 billion (£1.2bn) each.

Infosys, which has a market cap of more than $44 billion (£33.7bn) at the time of writing, is India's second-biggest IT firm. The company was founded in Pune in 1981 with just $250 (£190) initial capital by seven engineers, five of whom are now dollar billionaires. N R Narayana Murthy (pictured third from the right with five of the co-founders) is the wealthiest of the bunch with a fortune of $2.4 billion (£1.8bn). The “father of the Indian IT industry”, he serves as the company's chairman emeritus.

Former Infosys executive vice chairman Senapathy Gopalakrishnan, who is currently involved with a firm supporting startups, has a net worth of $2.2 billion (£1.7bn). Non-executive chairman Nandan Nilekani (pictured) has a fortune of $2.1 billion (£1.6bn). While K Dinesh stepped down from the board in 2011 and now devotes his time to philanthropy, but is still worth $1.5 billion (£1.1bn). S D Shibulal, who co-founded startup-funding firm Axilor Ventures with Gopalakrishan has a fortune of $1.4 billion (£1.1bn).

China's Tencent is the world's largest gaming company, one of the biggest social media firms on the planet and a leader in entertainment and artificial intelligence. Founded in 1998, the business turned over $46.5 billion (£35.6bn) last year. Co-founder, chairman and CEO Ma Huateng aka Pony Ma is the richest person in China currently with a net worth of $43.2 billion (£33bn). But Tencent has created four billionaires besides Ma.

Former CTO Zhang Zhidong aka Tony Zhang is the company's second-largest shareholder and is worth a hefty $14.9 billion (£11.4bn). South African Koos Bekker (pictured), who heads media firm Naspers, holds a 31% stake after investing in Tencent in its early days, has a fortune of $2.5 billion (£1.9bn). Company president Chi Ping Lau aka Martin Lau and co-founder Chen Yidan aka Charles Zen were also made billionaires thanks to their involvement in Tencent.

One of America's largest privately held companies, candy and pet foods empire Mars was established in 1911 by the late Franklin Clarence Mars and his wife Ethel in Tacoma, Washington. These days, the business turns over more than $35 billion (£26.7bn) annually. Upon his death, Franklin Clarence's son Forrest bequeathed the company to his three children, Jacqueline (pictured here with her granddaughters Graysen Airth and Katherine Burgstahler), John and Forrest Jr.

Jacqueline and John each own a third of the firm and are worth $26.1 billion (£19.9bn) a-piece. Forrest Mars Jr. died in 2016, and his 33.3% stake passed to his four daughters, Marijke, Pamela, Valerie and Victoria (pictured), who are all actively involved in the company that owns world-famous brands from M&M's and Snickers to Dolmio and Whiskas. The women are each worth $6.5 billion (£5bn).

Samsung is the largest of South Korea's family-owned chaebols. The enormous conglomerate has interests in electronics, shipbuilding, and insurance, and turns over hundreds of billions of dollars a year. It was established in 1938 as a small trading company by late patriarch Lee Byung-chul. Today, six members of the Lee family boast billion-dollar fortunes, the richest of whom is company chair Lee Kun-hee, the third son of Lee Byung-chul. His net worth is $17.2 billion (£13.1bn).

Lee Kun-hee's eldest son, Lee Jae-yong aka Jay Y Lee (pictured) is the second-richest family member with a fortune of $6.9 billion (£5.3bn). However, he recently served a jail sentence for bribery. His sister Lee Boo-jin heads the family's Hotel Shilla in Seoul and is worth $1.8 billion (£1.4bn). The other billionaire family members are Lee Kun-hee's sister Lee Myung-hee, his second daughter Lee Seo-hyun and nephew Lee Jay-hyun.

Samsung's incredible success story: from grocery store to tech titans

Russian oil company TNK-BP was the country's third-largest producer of the commodity and one of the largest private oil firms on the planet. Before it was absorbed by rival Rosneft in 2013, the business pumped out billions of barrels of black gold and reported revenues of more than $60 billion (£46bn) a year. The enterprise made billionaires of six people, including Ukrainian-born tycoon and Warner Music Group owner Len Blavatnik, who is now worth $18.2 billion (£13.9bn).

Also cashing in on his involvement in the defunct oil company, fellow partner in the firm Mikhail Fridman (pictured) has a current fortune of $15 billion (£11.5bn). Two of his university friends German Khan and Alexei Kuzmichev partnered in the business too and cleaned up: they are worth $9.8 billion (£7.5bn) and $7.5 billion (£5.7bn) respectively. Oligarch Pyotr Aven completes the list with a real-time fortune of $5.2 billion (£4bn).

When Brazilian banks Itaú and Unibanco merged in 2008 they created the largest financial conglomerate in the Southern Hemisphere. Today, Itaú Unibanco is the 10th largest bank in the world by market value with annual revenues of $47.8 billion (£36.5bn) in 2018. The merger also cemented the wealth of two billionaire dynasties, the Moreira Salles and Egydio Villelas. Pedro Moreira Salles (pictured), the son of Unibanco founder Walther, is the current chairman and is worth $2.9 billion (£2.2bn).

Pedro's brothers Fernando Roberto, Joao (pictured), and Walther Jr also have fortunes of $2.9 billion (£2.2bn) a-piece. Three scions of Itáu founder Alfredo Egydio de Souza Aranha are billionaires as well. They include Itáu Unibanco board member Alfredo Egydio de Arruda Villela Filho, who has a net worth of $2.2 billion (£1.7bn).

One of Indonesia's largest conglomerates, Sinar Mas was formed in 1962 by Eka Tjipta Widjaja, who died in January 2019 aged 98. The group's main subsidiary Golden Agri-Resources is a major producer of palm oil, a practice for which it has drawn intense criticism. Widjaja's business empire is now controlled by his 15 children who together inherited a fortune of around $8.6 billion (£6.6bn).

Many of his children work for the family firm. Eka Widjaja's eldest son Teguh Ganda Widjaja runs the group's paper and pulp concerns, while son Franky (pictured) heads Golden Agri Resources. His second son Oei Hong Leong who is an investor and real estate mogul based in Singapore has a net worth of $1.5 billion (£1.2bn).

Investing legend Warren Buffett, who is also known as The Oracle of Omaha, has turned Berkshire Hathway into one of the world's most successful enterprises. The company owns a slew of companies including Duracell, Dairy Queen and GEICO, holds significant interests in American Express, Coca-Cola, Apple, and turns over $247.5 billion (£189.8bn) annually. Needless to say, company chair Buffett is a billionaire and then some, with a fortune of $86.3 billion (£66bn).

As well as Buffet, Berkshire Hathaway has minted eight other billionaires. Vice-chair Charlie Munger (pictured left) is worth $1.7 billion (£1.3bn), while early investors David Gottesman and Stewart Horejsi have fortunes of $2.4 billion (£1.8bn) and $1.9 billion (£1.5bn) respectively. The three surviving children and the heirs of the late son of Harold Alfond, whose shoe firm Buffett paid for in Berkshire stock, complete the list with a collective net worth of almost $4.8 billion (£3.7bn).

German family-owned company, B Braun has also spawned eight billionaires. The medical and pharmaceutical device firm was founded back in 1839 in the small town of Melsungen as a pharmacy that sold herbal remedies. These days, the business turns over $7.8 billion (£6bn) a year, based off 2017 figures. Former chairman Ludwig Georg Braun (pictured), who took the helm in 1977, is credited with transforming the family firm into a global powerhouse.

Ludwig Georg Braun's five children and three of his cousin's children are all billionaires. His son Otto Philipp (pictured) is the richest with a $2.4 billion (£1.8bn) fortune. His sister Anna Maria is the current CEO, and is worth $1.1 billion (£844m), as are the other siblings, Johanna, Karl Friedrich and Ludwig Theodor. Cousins Bernard, Eva Maria and Friederike Braun-Luedicke are worth $1.3 billion (£993m) a-piece. Ludwig, 29, and Eva Maria, 32, rank among the world's youngest billionaires.

Another German family firm, foods giant Dr Oetker, which reported sales of $14 billion (£10.7bn) last year, started in 1891 when Dr August Oetker developed a non-perishable baking powder. Controversially, the company was diversified after World War II by his grandson Rudolf-August Oetker (pictured) a former Nazi SS officer. Rudolf August Oetker's eldest son August Oetker serves as the company's advisory board chairman and like his siblings, holds a 12.5% stake and is worth $2 billion (£1.5bn).

The eldest daughter of Rudolf-August Oetker, Rosely Schweizer was the company's advisory board chairwoman until 2010 and is active in German politics. She is worth $2 billion (£1.5bn). The other Dr Oetker billionaire siblings are CEO Richard Oetker (pictured), interior designer Bergit Douglas, former market researcher Christian Oetker , Alfred Oetker, who sits on the advisory board, investment manager Carl Oetker, and baby of the family Julia Oetker.

The social media behemoth that has conquered the globe, Facebook currently has 2.2 billion users and pulled in revenues of $55.8 billion (£42.3 billion) in 2018. Three of its co-founders are billionaires. Current CEO Mark Zuckerberg is worth $66.8 billion (£51bn), former CTO and engineering VP Dustin Moskovitz has a fortune of $11.9 billion (£9.1bn), while ex-CTO Eduardo Saverin, who was ousted from the firm and ended up suing Facebook, is worth $10.4 billion (£7.9bn).

It doesn't end there for the fortunes of the social network's early backers. Investors Yuri Milner, who later went on to invest in Airbnb and Spotify, and Peter Thiel are worth $3.7 billion (£2.8bn) and $2.5 billion (£1.9bn) respectively. Several employees have also found that working at Facebook has transformed their finances. Former engineering VP Jeff Rothschild amassed a fortune of $2.9 billion (£2.2bn), Facebook's first president Sean Parker, who left the firm in 2005, has $2.7 billion (£2.1bn), and current COO Sheryl Sandberg is presently worth $1.6 billion (£1.2bn).

Facebook's 15-year timeline and the staggering numbers behind its success

Google is the number one global search engine and its parent company Alphabet turned over $136.8 billion (£104.9bn) in 2018. Launched in 1998, the search leviathan has made billionaires of founders Sergey Brin (right) and Larry Page (second right), who are currently worth $54.6 billion (£41.7bn) and $55.9 billion (£42.7bn) respectively. Google has also given former CEO and current Alphabet Technical Advisor Eric Schmidt (left) an 11-figure net worth. He has a fortune of $13.9 billion (£10.6bn).

The roll call of Google billionaires doesn't stop there. Andreas von Bechtolsheim (pictured), who is currently worth $7.9 billion (£6bn), and David Cheriton who has a fortune of $6.8 billion (£5.2bn) invested $100,000 (£76.4k) each in the search engine during its early days. Early backers Kavitark Ram Shriram and Michael Moritz are worth $2.1 billion (£1.6bn) and $3.6 billion (£2.8bn) respectively.

US retail juggernaut Walmart was founded in 1962 by the late Sam Walton. Since then, the multinational chain has become the world's largest company in terms of revenue with sales of $514.4 billion (£394.5bn). The children of Sam Walton and his brother Bud, who helped build the company, and their families own almost 50% of the company and are collectively worth $173 billion (£132.7bn). Sam's son Jim (pictured right with Alice and Rob) is the richest with a fortune of $47.2 billion (£36bn).

Jim's sister Alice isn't far behind, with a net worth of $47 billion (£35.9bn), making her the richest woman in the world. And their elder brother Rob has $46.9 billion (£35.9bn). The son of the trio's late sibling John, Lukas Walton is worth $16.4 billion (£12.5bn), while Bud Walton's daughters Ann and Nancy are worth $12.5 billion (£9.6bn). Outside of the Walton family, the other Walmart billionaire is Drayton McLane Jr (pictured), who sold his distribution business to Sam Walton in 1991. He is worth $2.4 billion (£1.8bn).

One of the world's biggest and most valuable companies, Chinese e-commerce and cloud computing giant Alibaba has a market cap of $352.3 billion (£267.7bn), and according to Bloomberg, has been instrumental in creating 11 billionaires. They include most obviously Jack Ma, the company co-founder and executive chairman, who has a net worth at the time of writing of $39.4 billion (£30.1bn).

A further 10 individuals connected to Alibaba have joined the world's most exclusive club. Two of the billionaires hail from fintech firms that owe their success 100% to Alibaba, while a further six people with 10 and 11-figure fortunes founded or work for shipping companies that fulfil orders for the incredibly successful Chinese business. The wealthiest is Wang Wei, the chair of the so-called Fedex of China SF Express, who has a fortune of $13.3 billion (£10.2bn).

The Hyatt Hotels Corporation was founded by brothers Jay and Donald Pritzker in 1957 when they purchased the Hyatt House Hotel in Los Angeles. Fast-forward to the present day and the multinational chain has 777 properties in 54 countries and turns over billions of dollars a year. Eleven descendants of the Pritzker brothers are billionaires, including investor, producer and philanthropist Karen Pritzker, who is the richest with a net worth of $5 billion (£3.8bn).

Executive chairman Thomas Pritzker is the only Pritzker who still works at Hyatt. His fortune stands at $4.2 billion (£3.2bn). Penny, who is worth $2.7 billion (£2.1bn) is a former US Secretary of Commerce, while J B (pictured) is the current governor of Illinois, and has a fortune of $3.2 billion (£2.5bn). The remaining Pritzker billionaires include movie producer Gigi, who is worth $3.2 billion (£2.4bn) and Jennifer, the world's first transgender billionaire.

Billionaires with no kids to leave their fortune to

Austrian entrepreneur Dietrich Mateschitz (pictured) teamed up with Thai energy drink tycoon Chaleo Yoovidhya in 1987 to adapt his Krating Daeng drink to Western tastes, creating the unstoppable Red Bull, which is now the world's leading energy drink with 6.8 billion cans sold last year, adding to the tens of billions that have flown off shelves over the past three decades. Red Bull's billionaires are led by Mateschitz, who is currently worth a cool $19.9 billion (£15.2bn).

Chaleo Yoovidhya died in 2012, so Mateschitz shares the company's fortunes with the Thai co-founder's 11 children.Together, they own 51% of Red Bull and have a combined net worth of $21 billion (£16.1bn). Eldest son Chalerm (pictured, with his wife) heads the clan and personally owns 2% of the drink that gives you wings.

Founded in 1896 by Fritz Hoffmann-La Roche, Swiss biotech company Roche, which turned over $56.5 billion (£43.2bn) last year, has spawned at least 12 billionaires according to Bloomberg. Eight descendants of Hoffmann-La Roche control 45% of voting shares and own an 8% stake in the hugely successful pharmaceuticals firm that has brought the world Valium, Tamiflu and several key HIV and cancer drugs. The wealthiest scion is André Hoffmann with a net worth of $4.5 billion (£3.5bn).

Maja Oeri (pictured second left with actor Daniel Craig and others) is the second wealthiest Roche billionaire, with a personal fortune that totals $2.4 billion (£1.8bn). Oeri became a billionaire in 2011 when she pulled her 5% stake out of the family pool. Other Hoffmann-La Roche descendants that have 10-figure fortunes include Andreas Oeri, Beatrice Oeri and Sabine Duschmale-Oeri.

American agribusiness colossus Cargill has minted 14 billionaires. A total of 23 members of the Cargill-MacMillan dynasty share a fortune of $42.3 billion (£32.4bn) gleaned from the firm, which turned over $114.7 billion (£85.4bn) in 2018. Together, the clan owns 90% of the business that was founded in 1865 by William W Cargill as a single grain warehouse in Iowa. Today, the wealthiest scion is Pauline MacMillan Keinath who has a 12% stake and is worth $7.2 billion (£5.5bn).

The second-richest is Whitney MacMillan (pictured), who has a fortune of $5.9 billion (£4.5bn). The final family member to serve as CEO of Cargill, he stepped down in 1995. Other prominent scions include Gwendolyn Sontheim Meyer who inherited a stake of 7% and net worth of $4.5 billion (£3.5bn), as well as Marianne Liebmann, Austen Cargill II and James Cargill II, who are each worth $4.2 million (£3.2m).

Billionaires giving away their fortunes to save the world

Thailand's biggest conglomerate Charoen Pokphand Group has spawned a record 17 billionaires according to the Hurun Global Rich List 2019. Founded in 1921 as a shop selling seeds, the group has major interests in Chinese firm Ping-An Insurance, Thailand's 7-Eleven chain, the country's largest ISP, various agribusiness, retail, logistics, property, automotive companies, and more. CP Group's 17 billionaires belong to the Chearavanont family, which is currently headed by Dhanin Chearavanont.

Dhanin Chearavanont is worth some $17.5 billion (£13.4 billlion) and has been the face of the secretive clan for decades. Dhanin passed on his positions as CEO and chairman to his sons Suphachai (pictured) and Soopakij in 2017, and in addition to his wife and children, shares the immense family fortune with three brothers and numerous other relatives. 

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