In today’s world, tech genius Elon Musk leads the list of world billionaires with a fortune of $208.3 billion.
At the beginning of 2020, his fortune was only a tenth of what it is today, with a fortune then at $25.6 billion, less than billionaires Jeff Bezos and Mark Zuckerberg. Elon Musk’s skyrocketing wealth comes from the stakes he has in electric car maker Tesla, Space X and the Boring Company.
Following Elon Musk are billionaires Bernard Arnault, Gautam Adani and Jeff Bezos respectively... But these people are not the answer to the question "Who is the first USD billionaire in the world".
Jeff Bezos, Bill Gates, Warren Buffett or Elon Musk are not the first billionaires. Photo: Inc. Magazine.
The World’s First Billionaire
In 1916, American business magnate John Davison Rockefeller achieved billionaire status by owning the oil company Standard Oil, which operated from 1870-1911.
Billionaire Rockefeller has always worked hard. He worked a lot of odd jobs, including raising turkeys and doing housework for the neighbors, to make whatever money he could. At the age of 16, he got his first job as an assistant accountant for Hewitt & Tuttle, but had to drop out of school to get a job.
Then Rockefeller’s ascent began in 1870. He founded the Standard Oil Company, which later became the dominant monopoly in the oil industry. At its peak, Standard Oil was considered the largest oil company in the world. The company controlled 90% of America’s oil refineries and pipelines in the early 1880s.
It wasn’t long before his brilliant leadership catapulted co-founder and chairman John D. Rockefeller into the richest American, standing on the list of the richest people of all time.
Billionaire John D. Rockefeller. Photo: Celebrity Net Worth.
In 1913, Rockefeller’s personal fortune was estimated at $900 million, more than 2% of US GDP then $39.1 billion. In 1916, John D. Rockefeller, who was a kid who dropped out of school and worked odd jobs to survive, became America’s first billionaire. At the time of his death in 1937, Rockefeller’s fortune was $1.4 billion, while the total national GDP was $92 billion.
Despite his death, John D. Rockefeller is still ranked in the list of the richest billionaires in history. There is an old saying "No one is rich with three families". But the family of "oil kings" Rockefeller is an exception. They became the first billionaire family in a history spanning more than 100 years and 7 generations.
According to Forbes, as of 2016, the Rockefeller family’s fortune is worth more than $11 billion. John’s grandson David was the oldest living billionaire (101 years old) before his death in 2017. Today, Rockefeller’s fortune is divided equally among more than 70 heirs.
In addition to his huge fortune, John D. Rockefeller is also known as a philanthropist. During his lifetime, he gave away more than $500 million and is one of the great benefactors of medical science. Even at the age of 16, working as a secretary for 50 cents a day, Rockefeller still gave away 6% of his income to charity.
He is also the founder of the University of Chicago and Rockefeller University, which funded the establishment of Central Philippine University in the Philippines.
Billionaire David Rockefeller. Photo: Britannica.
The richest man of all time
It is no exaggeration to say that billionaire Elon Musk’s $ 208.3 billion is the dream of many people, but this is not the most terrible number when it comes to billionaires’ fortunes. Throughout human history, there was one man who firmly held this title, the 14th century African King Mansa Musa.
During his lifetime, King Mansa Musa accumulated so much wealth that it is difficult to calculate the details. Even the media described his wealth as "unthinkable". After adjusting for inflation, King Mansa Musa’s fortune is worth over $400 billion, nearly twice that of billionaire Elon Musk, richer than anyone in medieval times and today.
King Mansa Musa is the richest man in human history. Photo: History.
He ascended the throne in 1312, when the kingdom was already prosperous. But under his leadership, Mali became even richer. Reigning a kingdom that stretched across Africa, the land of King Mansa Musa possessed the richest gold reserves in the world and controlled important trade routes.
According to History.com, Musa showed the true scale of his fortune during a pilgrimage to Mecca. Around him was an entourage of tens of thousands of people, 100 camels carrying 136 kg of pure gold. This pilgrimage spread rumors of his wealth throughout the Mediterranean.
