Finance Dominates Path to Billionaire Status, New Data Reveals
New York, NY - October 20, 2025 – While inheriting wealth remains the most common route, a meaningful 15% of the world’s billionaires built their fortunes through finance and investment, according to a new analysis of Forbes data by Americans for Tax Fairness and reported by Morning Brew. This makes following in the footsteps of investors like Warren Buffett the most likely professional path to joining the exclusive billionaire club.
The findings come as the number of billionaires globally continues to climb, reaching 3,028 this year – a substantial increase from the 66 billionaires in 1990, when the economy was less than half its current size. US billionaires collectively hold approximately $7.6 trillion in wealth, representing 4.5% of all wealth held by Americans, despite comprising only .0003% of the population.
The united States currently leads the world in billionaire count, hosting nearly one-third of the global total, followed by China (450), India (205), Germany (171), and Russia (140). These individuals tend to concentrate in major cities like New York City (123 billionaires), moscow, Hong Kong, London, and Beijing.
While a growing number of women are achieving billionaire status – currently representing 13% of the total, according to the Altrata Billionaire Census - inherited wealth remains a dominant factor, with one-third of billionaires having received a substantial portion of their net worth through inheritance or marriage.
Beyond finance, other prominent industries contributing to billionaire wealth include technology (13%), manufacturing (11%), fashion and retail (10%), and healthcare (7%). However, the majority of billionaire wealth (66%) remains tied up in stocks, often within the companies they founded, limiting their ability to readily convert it to cash.
