40 Richest People in the World Who Came From Poor Families
To compile the list of the 40 richest people in the world who came from poor families, we obtained data from the Forbes Real Time Billionaires List.
We have shortlisted the list of billionaires who have a Forbes Self-made score of 9 and 10. The billionaires with a Self-made score of 9 are the people who came from a largely working-class background or rose from little to nothing. Whereas, the billionaires with a Self-made score of 10 are those who not only grew up poor but also overcame significant obstacles. For the billionaires outside of the US whose self-made score wasn’t mentioned, we shortlisted them based on the same criteria as the self-made scores of 9 and 10. The richest people in the world who came from poor families are ranked in ascending order of their net worth, as of September 25.
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40. Harry Stine
Net Worth: $10.2 Billion
Harry Stine comes from humble beginnings as he was born to a farmer dad. Stine founded and runs Stine Seed, one of the largest seed companies in the world. With a net worth of $10.2 billion, Harry Stine ranks among the 40 richest people in the world who came from poor families.
39. Bernard Marcus
Net Worth: $11.1 Billion
Bernard Marcus was born in Russia and migrated to the US with his parents and lived his childhood life in a walk-up tenement in New Jersey. Bernie Marcus co-founded Home Depot along with Arthur Blank in 1978.
38. Sky Xu
Net Worth: $11.2 Billion
Sky Xu comes from an extremely poor background as his mother was a garment worker. Xu is cofounder and CEO of Shein, a fast-fashion firm famous among Gen Z, selling trendy clothes in over 150 countries. Sky Xu ranks among the richest people in the world who come from poor families.
37. Goh Cheng Liang
Net Worth: $11.4 Billion
Goh Cheng Liang grew up in poverty before he began making paints in a small factory in Singapore. In 1962, Liang went on to partner with Nippon Paint and today he is the majority shareholder in the firm.
36. David Steward
Net Worth: $11.4 Billion
David Steward grew up in the segregated South and his father worked as a mechanic, janitor, and trash collector. After a lot of hardships, Steward founded the IT provider World Wide Technology. With a net worth of $11.4 billion, David Steward ranks among the 40 richest people in the world who came from poor families.
35. Terry Gou
Net Worth: $11.5 Billion
Terry Gou’s family fled to Taiwan in 1949 after the Chinese Civil War. Terry Gou is the founder of Hon Hai Precision, the world’s largest electronics contract manufacturer with over 40% market share.
34. Charoen Sirivadhanabhakdi
Net Worth: $12.6 Billion
Charoen Sirivadhanabhakdi is the son of a street vendor from Bangkok. Sirivadhanabhakdi makes his fortune from Chang beer, Thailand’s largest beverage producer and distributor by revenue. Charoen Sirivadhanabhakdi ranks 34th among the richest people in the world who came from poor families.
33. Li Xiting
Net Worth: $12.9 Billion
Li Xiting was born in a rural village of his family name in Dangshan County. Xiting is cofounder and chairman of Shenzhen Mindray Bio-Medical Electronics, a supplier of medical devices.
32. Judy Love
Net Worth: $13.1 Billion
In 1964, along with her husband Tom, Judy Love founded the truck stop and convenience store chain Love’s Travel Stops & Country Stores. The couple first leased a gas station in Watonga via a $5,000 loan from Tom’s parents. Judy Love is one of the richest people in the world who came from poor families.
31. Shahid Khan
Net Worth: $13.3 Billion
Shahid Khan migrated from Pakistan to the US and did several odd jobs before buying Flex-N-Gate from his former employer in 1980. Today, Shahid Khan owns the NFL’s Jacksonville Jaguars, the UK’s Fulham football club, and launched All Elite Wrestling (AEW) in 2019.
30. David Sun
Net Worth: $13.9 Billion
David Sun immigrated from Taiwan to the US with his wife Diana back in 1977, looking for a new life with greater opportunity. David is a co-founder and operates Kingston Technology, which manufactures storage and memory products. David Sun ranks 30th among the richest people in the world who came from poor families.
29. John Tu
Net Worth: $14 Billion
John Tu had to move from Chongqing to Shanghai in 1945 before migrating to Taiwan two years later following the Chinese Civil War. Tu is a longtime partner of David Sun and co-founded Kingston Technology.
28. James Dyson
Net Worth: $14.1 Billion
James Dyson’s father died when he was very young and he had to struggle up. In 1978, Dyson set out to invent a better version of the vacuum using a cyclone to lift dirt. With a net worth of $14.1 billion, James Dyson ranks among the 40 richest people in the world who came from poor families.
27. Ernest Garcia, II
Net Worth: $14.1 Billion
Ernest Garcia, II is the largest shareholder in Carvana, an online retailer of used cars and making auto loans. Garcia also owns and runs DriveTime Automotive.
26. Israel Englander
Net Worth: $14.2 Billion
Israel Englander is the son of Polish immigrants. Englander founded the hedge fund Millennium Management in 1989. Israel Englander has a net worth of $14.2 billion and ranks among the richest people in the world who came from poor families.
25. Manuel Villar
Net Worth: $14.4 Billion
Manuel Villar comes from a humble background and his mother was a seafood vendor. Villar chairs property developer Vista Land & Lifescapes and has stakes in several other companies.
24. Wang Wei
Net Worth: $15.5 Billion
Wang Wei moved to Hong Kong at a young age. Wang founded chairs S.F. Holding and has a net worth of $15.5 billion. Wang Wei ranks among the 40 richest people in the world who came from poor families.
23. Eric Smidt
Net Worth: $15.6 Billion
Eric Smidt started work as a teenager to fund his high school studies. Smidt is the CEO of Harbor Freight Tools, a home improvement retailer that has over 1,300 stores.
22. Jan Koum
Net Worth: $16.2 Billion
Jan Koum moved from Ukraine to the US. Koum co-founded WhatsApp, which was sold to Meta Platforms for $22 billion in 2014. Jan Koum ranks 22nd among the richest people in the world who came from poor families.
21. James Ratcliffe
Net Worth: $16.7 Billion
James Ratcliffe went from zero to hero and founded the chemical powerhouse Ineos Group. With a majority stake in the company, James Ratcliffe is one of the richest people in the world who came from poor families.
20. Lei Jun
Net Worth: $17 Billion
Lei Jun’s parents were teachers in China and he grew up in the underdeveloped countryside of Hubei. Jun is co-founder and chairman of Xiaomi, one of the largest smartphone brands.
19. Harry Triguboff
Net Worth: $17.1 Billion
Harry Triguboff had a difficult childhood moving places. Triguboff apartment-tower development company, Meriton, has a strong presence in Sydney. Harry Triguboff is one of the richest people in Australia who came from poor families.
18. Henry Samueli
Net Worth: $17.9 Billion
Henry Samueli’s parents are Polish-Jewish immigrants who survived the German Nazi occupation of Europe and arrived in the US with almost nothing. Samueli is co-founder and chairman of chipmaker Broadcom.
17. Harold Hamm
Net Worth: $18.5 Billion
Harold Hamm grew up in rural Oklahoma and was the last of 13 children born to sharecroppers. Hamm founded and chairs Continental Resources, one of the United States’ biggest independent oil companies. Harold Hamm is one of the richest people in the world who came from poor families.
16. Andreas von Bechtolsheim
Net Worth: $20.2 Billion
Andreas von Bechtolsheim grew up in a poor family. Andreas is the co-founder and chief architect of network switching company Arista Networks.
15. Wang Chuanfu
Net Worth: $20.4 Billion
Wang Chuanfu was born in a farm village in one of China’s poorest provinces in 1966. Chuanfu was orphaned as a teen and raised by his elder brother and sister. Chuanfu is the CEO of BYD and has led it to become one of the world’s largest EV companies.
14. François Pinault
Net Worth: $21 Billion
François Pinault grew up in a rural countryside in France and his father was a timber trader. Pinault founded Kering, which owns some of the top luxury brands including Saint Laurent, Alexander McQueen, and Gucci. François Pinault ranks among the 40 richest people in the world who came from poor families.
13. Diane Hendricks
Net Worth: $21.9 Billion
Diane Hendricks was born in 1947 and grew up with eight sisters on a small dairy farm in Wisconsin. Diane Hendricks co-founded ABC Supply, one of the largest wholesale distributors of roofing, siding, and windows in the US.
12. John Menard, Jr.
Net Worth: $22.9 Billion
John Menard, Jr. is the eldest of eight siblings and grew up in a low-income house. John Menard owns the home improvement retailer, Menards. With a net worth of over $22 billion, John Menard, Jr. ranks amongst the richest people in the world who came from poor families.
11. Radhakishan Damani
Net Worth: $23.5 Billion
Radhakishan Damani wasn’t raised in wealth and comes from a humble background. Damani owns the supermarket retail giant Avenue Supermarts.
10. Jack Ma
Net Worth: $24.7 Billion
Jack Ma struggled throughout his life until he co-founded Alibaba Group, one of the largest e-commerce groups in the world. Jack Ma ranks 10th among the richest people in the world who came from poor families.
9. Alexey Mordashov
Net Worth: $25.5 Billion
Alexey Mordashov’s parents were steel mill workers. Mordashov is the majority shareholder in the steel company Severstal.
8. He Xiangjian
Net Worth: $26.2 Billion
He Xiangjian comes from a humble background. Xiangjian built Midea Group into one of the world’s largest appliance makers. He Xiangjian ranks among the 40 richest people in the world who came from poor families.
7. Lee Shau Kee
Net Worth: $29.1 Billion
Lee Shau Kee was the fourth of five children born to a farming family. In 1976, Lee started Henderson Land Development, the property firm that makes up the bulk of his wealth.
6. Len Blavatnik
Net Worth: $30 Billion
Len Blavatnik was born in Ukraine and then moved to Moscow. In 1978, Blavatnik immigrated to the US with his family. Blavatnik made his early fortune from Russian oil company TNK-BP and purchased Warner Music in 2011. With a net worth of $30 billion, Len Blavatnik ranks sixth among the richest people in the world who came from poor families.
5. Masayoshi Son
Net Worth: $31.4 Billion
Masayoshi Son belongs to the Zainichi Korean family who reside in Japan. Son founded and runs investment giant SoftBank Group.
4. Li Ka-Shing
Net Worth: $36.5 Billion
Li Ka-Shing was born into a poor family who migrated from China to Hong Kong in 1940 after the Japanese invasions. In May 2018, Li retired as chairman of CK Hutchison Holdings and CK Asset Holdings. Li Ka-Shing ranks among the richest people in the world who came from poor families.
3. Thomas Peterffy
Net Worth: $41.6 Billion
Thomas Peterffy’s father emigrated to the US after the failure of the Hungarian Revolution in 1956. Peterffy founded Interactive Brokers in 1993.
2. Sergey Brin
Net Worth: $129.6 Billion
Sergey Brin migrated from Russia to the US at a young age with his parents, suffering from antisemitic discrimination back in the 1970s. Sergey Brin co-founded Google, now Alphabet Inc., and is one of the richest people in the world who came from poor families.
1. Larry Ellison
Net Worth: $202.2 Billion
Larry Ellison is the founder of Oracle and ranks first among the richest people in the world who came from poor families. Ellison’s mother sent him to her aunt and he was adopted by her.
Credit: YahooFinance
