Schwarz vs Son

Schwarz Group (Lidl, Kaufland) and SoftBank Group.

The differences

Forbes puts Masayoshi Son about $2.2B ahead of Dieter Schwarz.Forbes figures from 9 Oct 2026 and 17 Sep 2026.
Dieter Schwarz: inherited and grew it. Masayoshi Son: founded it.
Dieter Schwarz is about 18 years older than Masayoshi Son.
Dieter Schwarz is from Germany; Masayoshi Son is from Japan.

Put someone else on either side

Schwarz

Son

Net worth, Forbes: $58.2BForbes, 17 Sep 2026; $60.4BForbes, 9 Oct 2026
Net worth, Bloomberg: $46.7BBloomberg, 17 Oct 2026; $41.3BBloomberg, 16 Oct 2026
Forbes rank: No. 33Real-Time list, 6 Jun 2026; No. 31Real-Time list, 9 Oct 2026
Billionaire since: Not stated; Not stated

How it started: Inherited and grew itForbes: he inherited the company from his father Josef, opened the first Lidl store in 1973, became CEO in 1977 and built Schwarz Group into Europe's largest retailer; Founded itFounded Nihon SoftBank (now SoftBank Group) in 1981
Main source: Control of Schwarz Group (Lidl, Kaufland, PreZero)Bloomberg: 'The majority of Dieter Schwarz's fortune derives from his control of Schwarz Group'; SoftBank Group stockBloomberg: most of his wealth comes from his SoftBank Group stake
Companies: Schwarz Group (Lidl, Kaufland)Schwarz Group (Lidl, Kaufland): Honorary board member with veto power; SoftBank Group, ArmSoftBank Group: Founder; representative director, corporate officer, chairman and CEO; Arm: Non-executive director and chairman
Biggest stake: Schwarz Group (Lidl, Kaufland)Stake not stated; SoftBank Group32.73% owned

Born: 1939Heilbronn, Germany; 11 Aug 1957Tosu, Japan
Country: GermanyLives in Neckarsulm, Germany; JapanLives in Tokyo, Japan
Education: Not statedJoined his father's company after finishing high school; Bachelor's degreeBachelor's degree in economics, University of California, Berkeley
Parents: His father Josef Schwarz was a partner in the fruit wholesaler Lidl & Co.; Born to a Korean immigrant family; his father worked at fisheries, farms, restaurants and pachinko parlours

Giving Pledge: Not a signer; Not a signer
Foundation: Dieter Schwarz StiftungFunds education and research in Heilbronn (Bildungscampus, experimenta, IPAI); it also holds the Lidl and Kaufland shares; Masason FoundationEstablished December 2016 to support talented young people; he is its president
Lifetime giving: Not stated; Not stated

Role now: On the boardHonorary board member of Schwarz Group's operating company; no longer general partner since December 2021; Runs the companyChairman and CEO of SoftBank Group; chairman of Arm
Successor: Gerd Chrzanowski, general partner of Schwarz Group since 1 December 2021A management handover, not an ownership heir; no Schwarz family member is in the group's named executive roster; Not stated
Public office: None found; None found
Legal record: None found; None found