How the facts are checked

Every fact about the 73 people on the site traces to a published source, and the source is kept with it so it can be checked again. When nothing reliable states a fact, the page says Not stated rather than guessing.

• Net worth is an estimate, with a date

  Nobody publishes an audited figure for a private fortune. We show Forbes' and Bloomberg's estimates side by side, each with the day it was published, and never average them or add our own. Rankings follow Forbes' figures.

• Stakes come from filings

  The share of a company someone owns comes from the company's own filings: proxy statements, annual reports and ownership filings such as the SEC's Schedule 13D and 13G. Each stake shows the filing and its date. Voting power is shown separately where it differs.

• How a fortune started

  Founded, joined and built, took over a family firm, inherited or married into: we place each person from company histories and their own biographies, and say why in a note.

• The person

  Birth dates, places, education and family come from official biographies, company and university pages, Britannica, and the Forbes and Bloomberg profiles. A claim found only in a tabloid or an aggregator isn't used.

• Giving

  Giving Pledge signatures come from the Pledge's own list. Lifetime giving is shown only where a foundation or Forbes publishes a figure, with what it counts: money paid out, a foundation's total, or a commitment.

• Legal record

  Only convictions, settlements, fines and judgments involving the person themselves, from the court or regulator that issued them, with the year. Criticism and lawsuits against their companies are not listed.

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