The first thing that comes to your mind when looking at the Forbes list of the richest women in the world 2019 is that their fortune is practically inherited. However, getting rich is not enough. You still need to manage to preserve and increase it, which is impossible if you lack business acumen.
And the richest woman in the world would not be on this list today if not for her financial flair and leadership skills.
10.Kwong Xiu-Hin (Hong Kong): $ 15.1 billion
One of the richest women in Asia controls the Sun Hung Kai Properties conglomerate, the largest property developer in Hong Kong. And it is its main shareholder, having concentrated in its hands 26.58% of shares. From 2008 to 2011, "Old Mrs. Kwong" headed Sun Hung Kai Properties while her three sons waged a power struggle that ended in the division of the family fortune.
Currently, one of Kwong's sons is in prison for bribery, the second died in 2018, and the third son, Raymond, heads the father's company.
9.Gina Rinehart (Australia): $ 15.2 billion
The main business of the Rhinehart family is the iron ore mining corporation. However, Gina does not have a typical wealthy heiress story as she did not inherit her father's wealth, only his debts.
When her father passed away in 1992, Gina was left with a business that was on the verge of bankruptcy, but she managed to successfully solve all the problems. For her and for those who know her story, Gina is a self-made person. She not only benefited from the dire financial plight she had to face, but she was also at a top that many dollar millionaires would never have. In 2012, she was declared the richest woman in the world. However, in 2019 it takes only 9th place.
8. Iris Fontbona (Chile): $ 15.4 billion
As the queen of Chile's mining industry and matriarch of the country's richest family, Iris received most of her fortune from a copper mining company she inherited from her late husband.
However, Chile's mining industry is not the only industry controlled by Iris. She is also responsible for other large businesses within the Luksic Group, including banking, brewing and shipping companies.
7. Abigail Johnson (USA): $ 15.6 billion
American Abigail Johnson became the most powerful woman in finance after taking over as chairman of Fidelity Investments. It is one of the three largest financial services companies in the United States. It was founded by Abigail's grandfather, Edward S. Johnson II.
Her current work is proof that a woman can be equal in the traditionally masculine world of finance and investment, and use her position to attract more women to the business. Abigail Johnson has made her company an attractive destination for women looking to pursue careers in finance.
6. Lauren Powell Jobs (USA): $ 18.6 billion
Lauren has always been overshadowed by her late husband, Steve Jobs, and would have preferred to continue like this until he lost the battle against cancer in 2011.
Lauren is currently engaged in philanthropy. The largest of her projects is the Emerson Collective, a Silicon Valley-based organization that promotes positive social change. For example, in 2017, a group of investors, including Emerson Collective, invested $ 10.5 million in solar startup Angaza.
5. Suzanne Klatten (Germany): $ 21 billion
The German businesswoman and mother of three currently owns more than 19% of the world's largest luxury car manufacturer BMW, which also owns the Mini Cooper and Rolls-Royce brands. At the same time, Suzanne is only the second largest shareholder of BMW after her brother Stefan Quandt, who owns more than 23% of the company's shares.
Suzanne's success in increasing capital does not depend 100% on the family's main business. Over the years, her activities have been centered at Altana AG, a pharmaceutical company founded by her grandfather. To this day, she remains the chairman and sole owner of Altana AG, which receives $ 2.5 million a year from drug sales.
4. Yang Huiyan (China): $ 22.1 billion
Yang, 38, remains the richest woman in China for the seventh consecutive year. This is hardly surprising considering she is the vice chairman and majority shareholder of Country Garden Holdings, a luxury property development company.
Yang's rise to the Olympus of multibillionaires began in 2007 when her father Yang Guoqiang transferred 70% of the shares to her and made her one of the main shareholders of Country Garden and the youngest billionaire in Asia.
3. Jacqueline Mars (USA): $ 23.9 billion
One of the richest women in the world lives the sweet life of the heiress of Mars Inc. She currently owns about one-third of the company, which is the same as her brother's.
In addition to being the heiress of the world famous candy corporation, Jacqueline is also an active philanthropist and owner of some of the most beautiful horses in the world.
2. Alice Walton (USA): $ 44.4 billion
The youngest child and only daughter of Walmart founder Sam Walton may not be as focused on the family business as her siblings, Rob and Jim, but that doesn't mean she's not making billions of dollars. Alice is co-manager of Walton Enterprises, one of the family-owned holding companies, which accounts for 50% of the largest retailer Walmart.
However, Alice's true passion lies in art. Evidence of this is her personal collection of paintings, which reportedly cost hundreds of millions of dollars, and the Crystal Bridges Museum of American Art, which she opened in 2011 in her hometown of Bentoville. Arkansas.
1. Françoise Bettencourt-Myers (France): $ 49.3 billion
The heir to the cosmetics empire, L'Oreal, has long played an important role in overseeing the family's fortunes as head of their own investment company, as well as president of the Bettencourt-Schüller Foundation, which supports medical, cultural and humanitarian projects.
Her late mother, Liliane Bettencourt, was the richest woman in the world until her death in 2017, and Françoise has so far managed to hold on to those positions.
In addition to being the richest woman in the world in 2019, the heiress of a billion dollar fortune, she is also known as the author of works on Greek mythology and Jewish-Christian relations.