Ohio Lands 7 On Forbes World’s Billionaires List
OHIO — The billionaires of the world are worth a whopping $12.7 trillion— even though their fortunes fell by more than $400 billion as sanctions target Russian oligarchs following Vladimir Putin’s invasion of Ukraine and the pandemic continues to cause economic difficulties, according to the recently released Forbes World’s Billionaires List.
In Ohio, Denise York, the Youngstown-based co-chairperson of the San Francisco 49ers, saw her net worth rise from $3.5 billion to $4 billion. However, Cincinnati-based August Troendle, president and CEO of Medpace, a clinical research company he founded, saw his fortune fall from $1.5 billion to $1.3 billion.
More than 1,000 billionaires are richer than they were a year ago. And more than 200 people became billionaires over the past year as ordinary Americans grapple with record gas prices and rising food costs at the grocery store.
The number of billionaires on this year’s list slipped to 2,668 — 87 fewer than last year.
A total of seven billionaires on this year’s list hail from Ohio. New Albany-based Les Wexner is at the top. He is the founder of L Brands, which includes Victoria’s Secret and Bath & Body Works.
Other Ohio billionaires on the list include:
- Clayton Mathile, Brookville, Iams, pet food maker, $2.3 billion
- Nancy Lerner, Cleveland, daughter of the late MBNA Chairman Al Lerner, $1.1 billion
- Norma Lerner, Cleveland, widow of MBNA Chairman Al Lerner, $1.1. billion
- Randy Lerner, Cleveland, son of late MBNA Chairman Al Lerner, $1.1. billion
To compile this year’s list, Forbes used a snapshot of its real-time billionaires rankings by analyzing stock prices and exchange rates for March 11.
The United States still leads the world with 735 billionaires worth a collective $4.7 trillion. This includes Tesla CEO Elon Musk, who tops the World’s Billionaires List for the first time.
Former Amazon CEO Jeff Bezos fell to the second spot on this year’s list. Bezos, who founded the e-commerce giant out of his garage in Seattle, Washington, stepped down as CEO in 2021 and is now executive chairman of the company.
Meanwhile, France’s Bernard Arnault of LVMH remains at No. 3, followed by Bill Gates of Microsoft at No. 4. Rounding out this year’s top five is Warren Buffett of Berkshire Hathaway.
U.S. billionaires could surrender more wealth should Congress pass a “Billionaire Minimum Tax” proposed in President Joe Biden’s fiscal year 2023 budget proposal.
Under the proposal, households worth more than $100 million would pay at least 20 percent in taxes on both income and “unrealized gains,” or the increase in an unsold investment’s value. Many wealthy people hold onto these investments for decades, meaning they’re never taxed, the administration said.
However, the bill’s prospects seem grim after Democrat Sen. Joe Manchin spoke out against it.
“You can’t tax something that’s not earned. Earned income is what we’re based on,” Manchin told The Hill. “There’s other ways to do it. Everybody has to pay their fair share.”