New report shows that the eight richest men in the world own half of the world’s wealth

The eight richest men in the world own the same wealth as half of the world’s population, according to a new report by Oxfam.

The report, titled ‘An economy for the 99 percent,’ details the massive gap between rich and poor and calls for “a fundamental change in the way we manage our economies so that they work for all people, and not just a fortunate few”.

The report was published to coincide with the start of the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland and blamed the glaring inequality between rich and poor on the influence of “big business and the super-rich,” who, the report claims, are “dodging taxes, driving down wages and using their power to influence politics”.

Oxfam’s report details how the majority of the poorest people in society are women and that the richest people in the world are accumulating wealth at such a rate that the world could see its first trillionaire within 25 years. To provide some context, you would need to spend $1 million every day for 2738 years to spend $1 trillion.

Amancio Ortega, the second richest man in the world

Oxfam claims that inequality is a huge factor behind the radicalisation increasingly evident in world politics of late and was a principal reason in the election of Donald Trump in the US, the election of President Duterte in the Philippines, and Brexit in the UK.

Commenting on the report, Winnie Byanyima, Executive Director of Oxfam International, said: “It is obscene for so much wealth to be held in the hands of so few when 1 in 10 people survive on less than $2 a day. Inequality is trapping hundreds of millions in poverty; it is fracturing our societies and undermining democracy.

“Across the world, people are being left behind. Their wages are stagnating yet corporate bosses take home million dollar bonuses; their health and education services are cut while corporations and the super-rich dodge their taxes; their voices are ignored as governments sing to the tune of big business and a wealthy elite.”

You can read the report in full here.

The eight wealthiest men in the world

1. Bill Gates: America founder of Microsoft (net worth $75 billion)
2. Amancio Ortega: Spanish founder of Inditex which owns the Zara fashion chain (net worth $67 billion)
3. Warren Buffett: American CEO and largest shareholder in Berkshire Hathaway (net worth $60.8 billion)
4. Carlos Slim Helu: Mexican owner of Grupo Carso (net worth: $50 billion)
5. Jeff Bezos: American founder, chairman and chief executive of Amazon (net worth: $45.2 billion)
6. Mark Zuckerberg: American chairman, chief executive officer, and co-founder of Facebook (net worth $44.6 billion)
7. Larry Ellison: American co-founder and CEO of Oracle (net worth $43.6 billion)
8. Michael Bloomberg: American founder, owner and CEO of Bloomberg LP (net worth: $40 billion)

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