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How the number of billionaires has changed over the past century

The rise of the ultra-rich worth 10 figures or more
First proclaimed dollar billionaire
First Forbes analysis
Dubious estimate
First proven dollar billionaire
Second dollar billionaire
Wartime billionaires
Getty's outrageous fortune
Swinging Sixties newcomer
Non-American billionaires
Growth in global billionaires
First confirmed British billionaire
First Forbes 400 list
First Forbes 400 List
First Forbes World Billionaires List
Japanese asset bubble billionaires
The first top 10
First Fortune Billionaires List
First Sunday Times Rich List
New wealthiest person in the world
Late 1980s and early 1990s changes
First significant drop in global billionaires
Rise of the American billionaires
Late 1990s plateau
Dot-com bubble boost
First black billionaires
Dot-com crash
Rise of the BRICS billionaires
Skyrocketing numbers
Financial crisis dip
Remarkable recovery
Change at the top
Peaking billionaire wealth
Recent fallback in billionaires and their wealth
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Emma McIntyre/Getty

The rise of the ultra-rich worth 10 figures or more

Back in 1918 there was just one supposed billionaire on the planet, an assumption that has since been called into question. Nowadays a total of 2,153 people around the world boast a net worth of 10 figures or more. Looking back over the past 100 years, we reveal how the number of billionaires has changed and chart the evolution of the planet's most exclusive club.

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Daniel Coughlin

13 November 2019

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