Ortega vs Walton

Inditex and Walmart.

The differences

Forbes puts Rob Walton about $0.5B ahead of Amancio Ortega.Forbes figures from 17 Oct 2026 and 6 Oct 2026.
Amancio Ortega: founded it. Rob Walton: inherited it.
Amancio Ortega is from Spain; Rob Walton is from United States.

Put someone else on either side

Ortega

Walton

Net worth, Forbes: $142BForbes, 6 Oct 2026; $142BForbes, 17 Oct 2026
Net worth, Bloomberg: $126BBloomberg, 9 Oct 2026; $144BBloomberg, 17 Oct 2026
Forbes rank: No. 10Annual list, 1 Mar 2026; No. 12Real-Time list, 17 Oct 2026
Billionaire since: 2001First year on a Forbes billionaires list: Forbes says he took Inditex public in 2001 and 'debuted on the Forbes billionaires list the same year' (No. 43, $6.6 billion); Not stated

How it started: Founded itInditex calls him its founder: he started a clothing workshop in 1963, opened the first Zara in 1975, and Inditex was formed as its parent in 1985. Forbes says he co-founded Inditex with his ex-wife Rosalía Mera (d. 2013); Inherited itSon of Walmart founder Sam Walton; joined Walmart in 1969 and chaired it from 1992 to 2015
Main source: Inditex stock, held through Pontegadea Inversiones and PartlerBloomberg: 'The majority of Amancio Ortega's fortune is derived from a 59.3% stake in Inditex'; he has received more than 9 billion euros in dividends since the 2001 IPO, much of it put into property; Walmart stock held through Walton Enterprises and the Walton Family Holdings TrustBloomberg: 'The majority of Rob Walton's fortune is derived from Walmart'
Companies: InditexInditex: Non-executive proprietary director; WalmartWalmart: Retired chairman; left the board in 2024
Biggest stake: Inditex59.294% owned; WalmartStake not stated

Born: 28 Mar 1936Busdongo de Arbas, Spain; Not stated
Country: SpainLives in A Coruña, Spain; United StatesLives in Bentonville, Arkansas, United States
Education: No universityLeft school at 12 to work; Graduate degreeBA, University of Arkansas; JD, Columbia University
Parents: Born into a working family; began working in the textile trade at a very young ageParents' occupations not stated; Son of Sam and Helen Walton, who opened a five-and-dime store in Arkansas in 1950 and later created Walmart

Giving Pledge: Not a signer; Not a signer
Foundation: Fundación Amancio OrtegaCreated in 2001; works in education and social welfare; Rob Walton FoundationSeparate from the family-wide Walton Family Foundation
Lifetime giving: Not stated; Not stated

Role now: On the boardNon-executive director of Inditex; chief executive of Pontegadea; RetiredRetired chairman of Walmart; owner in the Denver Broncos' Walton-Penner ownership group
Successor: His daughter Marta Ortega Pérez, non-executive chair of Inditex since April 1, 2022Óscar García Maceiras has been CEO since 2021; his wife Flora Pérez Marcote is also a director; Greg Penner, his son-in-law, is Walmart's non-executive chairman; John Furner is president and CEOSteuart Walton is a director, not an executive. The Delaware court opinion identifies Penner as his son-in-law
Public office: None found; None found
Legal record: 2013: Supreme Court of SpainThe Supreme Court rejected his final appeal in a dispute with tax auditors, leaving him to pay 33 million euros in back taxes for 2001 to 2003.; None found