Black billionaires

This article refers to actual or incipient billionaires (as measured by U.S. dollars) who have some degree of black ancestry. Not everyone in this article is considered black by all definitions.

Oprah Winfrey, world's only black billionaire for 3 straight years.

According to Forbes international rich lists, Oprah Winfrey is the richest black person and had been the world's only black billionaire for three straight years. However, Mobutu, the Congolese president, and Sani Abacha, the Nigerian military leader, were probably billionaires when they were alive but Forbes could never confirm this (according to Forbes magazine's Kerry Dolan)..

From 2001-2003, Forbes listed Black Entertainment Television founder Bob Johnson as a billionaire, but dropped him after his fortune was split in his divorce from his wife Sheila. He returned to Forbes international rich list in 2007 with a net worth of $1.1 billion USD.

Afro-multiracial billionaires have also been identified. Forbes international richest list includes Michael Lee-Chin of Canada, who is of Chinese and Afro-Caribbean acestry, and Sheikh Mohammad Hussein Al Amoudi who is of Ethiopian and Yemen ancestry.

Members

Billionaires with sub-Saharan ancestry by year (wealth valuations by Forbes magazine)
Year	Number of Billionaires of predominantly sub-Saharan ancestry	Number of billionaires with any known sub-Saharan ancestry	Number of all billionaires
1999	0, closest: Oprah Winfrey $725 million	0 , Closest: unknown	298, Richest: Bill Gates $90 billion
2000	0, closest: Oprah Winfrey $800 million	0, Closest: unknown	322, Richest: Bill Gates $60 billion
2001	1, Only Bob Johnson $1.6 billion	2, Richest: Bob Johnson $1.6 billion	538, Richest: Bill Gates $58.7 billion
2002	1, Only Bob Johnson $1 billion	3, Richest: Mohammad Al Amoudi $1.5 billion	497, Richest: Bill Gates $52.8 billion
2003	2, Richest: Bob Johnson $1.2 billion	4, Richest: Mohammad Al Amoudi $1.5 billion	476, Richest: Bill Gates $40.7 billion
2004	1, Only Oprah Winfrey $1.1 billion	3, Richest: Michael Lee-Chin $2.4 billion	587, Richest: Bill Gates $46.6 billion
2005	1, Only Oprah Winfrey $1.3 billion	3, Richest (tie): Michael Lee-Chin & Mohammad Al Amoudi both worth $2.5 billion	691, Richest:Bill Gates $46.5 billion
2006	1, Only Oprah Winfrey $1.4 billion	3, Richest: Mohammad Al Amoudi $6.9 billion	793, Richest: Bill Gates $50 billion
2007	2, Richest: Oprah Winfrey $1.5 billion	4, Richest: Mohammad Al Amoudi $8 billion	946, Richest: Bill Gates $56 billion

Current trends

Peoples of predominantly sub-Saharan ancestry constitute 8% of the world’s population (though this figure may have increased because of of rapid population growth in sub-Saharan Africa relative to the rest of the world) however as the above chart shows, they were 0% of the world’s billionaires in 1999 and 2000, 0.19% in 2001, 0.20% in 2002, 0.42% in 2003, 0.17% in 2004, 0.14% in 2005, 0.13% in 2006, and 0.21% in 2007. The dearth of black billionaires may be a reflection of Poverty in Africa and the fact that within the U.S. the median income of African Americans as a group is roughly 65 percent of that of "white" people, that is, "people having origins in any of the original peoples of Europe, the Middle East, or North Africa" according to census.

Despite this, there are signs of black economic progress, especially within the United States. Over 1.7 million African Americans have gone off the poverty rolls; earnings by African American women have moved to within a few percentage points of white women's; and purchasing power of black women in the United States has surpassed that of white women. Unemployment among blacks in recent years has dropped below the 10 percent mark. The poverty rate among African Americans has dropped from 26.5% in 1998 to 24.7% in 2004. The growth in African American incomes is translating into big gains in buying power and opportunities for black businesses. If these trends continue, Blacks (especially in America) can be expected to increase their percentage of the world’s billionaires.

Half-billionaires

Carl Cushnie

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Carl Cushnie leads the race to become Europe's first black billionaire.

Carl Cushnie is believed to be Britain's richest Black citizen. Real Business writes "the Jamaican immigrant arrived in this country aged 13 in straitened circumstances after the death of his father. He went on to become the UK's most admired black businessman, and with a 60 per cent shareholding worth £350m in his trade finance company, Versailles Group, the wealthiest". Cushnie purchased the black style magazine, Pride, where he made his son and namesake the publisher. He lived in a £12m mansion in the London suburb of Kingston and owns an opulent property in France. On August 25 2006 £350m equated to $661 million.

In 2004 Cushnie was reportedly sentenced to 6 years' imprisonment for conspiring to defraud private investors and was disqualified from acting as a company director for 10 years. How this development may have affected his net-worth is not known.

Patrice Motsepe

While no Black South African has ever appeared on Forbes Billionaire list, the end of apartheid has given rise to at least one Black Half-Billionaire, Patrice Motsepe, whose wealth has been estimated at more than $500 million and is believed to be South Africa’s richest Black. Also symbolizing South Africa’s new Black economic elite are Cyril Ramaphosa, one of South Africa's richest men, who was once mentioned as a possible successor to Nelson Mandela, Tokyo Sexwale, another politician turned entrepreneur, and banking and media tycoon Saki Macozoma.

Time Europe writes, “Although they work separately, Macozoma, Motsepe, Ramaphosa and Sexwale have been dubbed the Fabulous Four for their growing power and wealth, and between them, they have more than a billion dollars' worth of interests in some of South Africa's largest companies, including mining heavyweights Harmony Gold and Gold Fields, life insurer Sanlam, Alexander Forbes Financial Services as well as banking giants ABSA and Standard Bank”.

Entertainment industries

Sports

Earvin "Magic" Johnson will likely become the next black billionaire out of sports as he continues to expand his franchise and real estate empire. Two other names that frequently come up in discussions about who will be the world’s first billionaire professional athlete: Tiger Woods and Michael Jordan. Many people have become extremely wealthy from sports; Jordan is African American; while Woods, who is half asian, one quarter black, one eighth caucasian, and one eighth native american does not consider himself black, coining the term Cablinasian to describe his ethnicity. "If Jordan isn't the first billion-dollar athlete, then Tiger will be the first," said Rick Burton, director of the Warsaw Sports Marketing Centre at the University of Oregon. "This guy can play golf 45 or 50 years and, if you calculate it at $200 million a year, that's an unbelievable amount of money." Figures from Forbes magazine were more conservative, putting Woods' 2004-2005 earnings at $87 million and in 2005 Fortune magazine estimated Woods' net worth to be $298 million However, Formula 1 racer Michael Schumacher became the world's first billionaire athlete in 2005, per EuroBusiness magazine [23] (no longer published).

Fortune magazine estimated Jordan’s net worth at $398 million and although this figure is now several years dated, Jordan’s career has subsequently wound down. Some have described Jordan as underpaid given that Fortune also estimated his worldwide economic impact to be at $10 billion by 1998.

Black athlete Mike Tyson also had a lucrative career. "He should have been the first billionaire athlete in history" said boxing promoter Don King, citing Tyson's decision to end their partnership as a serious mistake. In 1998 Tyson left King and sued him for $100 million, claiming he had been cheated by King. The suit was settled for $14 million, and King has made his last payment to the fighter. Tyson reportedly grossed more than $400 million in his career but kept only 25%. During his years with King, he paid 30% to the promoter, 20% to two managers, and half of what was left to taxes. Tyson spent much of the rest and filed for bankruptcy in 2003 and has been repaying several million dollars in back taxes.

Low profile American businessman Reggie Fowler is a former college football player who now owns Spiral Inc., which supplies grocery store bags, cups, containers, labels and janatorial supplies. The Arizona Republic reported Fowlers net worth at more than $400 million in 2005. He gained national attention for his failed attempt to become the first black majority owner of the Minnesota Vikings although he is still currently a part owner of the NFL franchise.

Hip-Hop

As one of the world’s most lucrative Black dominated industries, the world’s next Black billionaire may emerge in hip-hop. Russell Simmons aspires to be hip-hop’s first billionaire but he has some competition. According to the Panache report which did six months of research , the ten richest people in Hip-hop are:

1. P. Diddy, $346 Million
2. Jay-Z, $340 Million
3. Russell Simmons, $325 Million
4. Damon Dash, $200 Million
5. The Neptunes (Pharell Williams and Chad Hugo), $155 Million
6. Dr. Dre, $150 Million
7. Ice Cube, $145 Million
8. Eminem, $110 Million
9. 50 Cent, $100 Million
10. Nelly, $60 Million

(Tied) Jermaine Dupri, $60 Million

Note: Eminem and Chad Hugo are white and Filipino American, respectively.

Billionaires in countries with high rates of Black ancestry

Brazil

Brazil is likely to be the country where South America's first Black billionaire emerges. According to Forbes, there are currently 16 Brazilian billionaires, and although there's no evidence to suggest that any are Black or have Black blood, black identity is frequently underreported in Brazil just as it is overreported in America. Just as anyone with any physically recognizable black ancestry can claim to be Black in America, anyone with any recognizable Caucasian ancestry is considered White in Latin America. Even individuals with enough African ancestry to make them as dark as Sidney Poitier can pass for White if they appear to have at least one physically visible Caucasian trait such as straight hair or narrow facial features. According to Jose Neinstein, a native white Brazilian and executive director of the Brazilian-American Cultural Institute in Washington, in America, "if you are not quite white, then you are black." But in Brazil, "If you are not quite black, then you are white." Neinstein recalls talking with a man of Poitier's complexion when in Brazil: "We were discussing ethnicity, and I asked him, 'What do you think about this from your perspective as a black man?' He turned his head to me and said, 'I'm not black,' . . . It simply paralyzed me. I couldn't ask another question."

However such culturual conventions are contradicted by companies like DNAPrint Genomics, used by law enforcement analyzes DNA to determine the exact percentage of Indo-European, sub-Saharan, East Asian, and Native American heritage someone has and assigns the to the categories White, Black, East Asian, Native American, or mixed race accordingly.

Nigeria

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Sani Abacha's inner circle may have embezzled billions, but how much he personally owned is unclear

Despite being one of Africa’s top oil producing countries, no citizen of Nigeria has ever appeared on Forbes billionaire list, however an editor for Forbes claims that dictator Sani Abacha (who died in office in 1998) probably was a billionaire after all. Abacha's position as an allegedly corrupt dictator made his wealth unusually difficult to track and so his exact net-worth was a subject of much dispute. Abacha has been accused of siphoning off $2.2 billion in foreign assets to his family and their representatives (some have put the figure as high as $3 billion), however this fortune may have been divided among the foreign bank accounts of too many people for Abacha, or any individual in his inner circle to have ever qualified as a billionaire. In April 2002, Switzerland, which began blocking Abacha's assets in late 1999, decided that Nigeria would get back $1 billion of the money allegedly embezzled by Abacha and his family with $535 million of that sum being transferred to the Bank for International Settlements in Basel to be used "in favor of the federal government of Nigeria," the justice office said.

According to the terms of a deal reached with the Abacha family, the Nigerian government agreed to drop all criminal charges against Abacha's son Mohammed Sani Abacha and businessman Bagudu Abubakar and would also allow the Abacha family to keep $100 million which were "acquired prior to Abacha's term of office and which . . . demonstrably do not derive from criminal acts," the Office of Justice said.

"The Nigerians talk about $2.2 billion being plundered from the Treasury. They already received around $1 billion between 1998 and 2001, and now they are getting another $1 billion, which corresponds more or less to the $2.2 billion," said Folco Galli, a justice office spokesman. Nigerian officials however, continue to insist that only some of the funds that Abacha allegedly embezzled are in Switzerland and have requested assistance from the United States, Britain, Luxembourg, Liechtenstein and Germany to find the rest.

South Africa

According to Forbes magazine, South Africa is currently the only country in sub-Saharan Africa that has billionaires and since the end of apartheid, it has been the recipient of much philanthropy by African American billionaire Oprah Winfrey. While the above mentioned Patrice Motsepe is leading the race to become South Africa's first Black billionaires, the country's three current billionaires are all White:

• Nicky Openheimer & family (De Beers) $4.6 billion
• Johann Rupert & family (luxury goods) $3.3 billion
• Donald Gordan (insurance, malls) $1.6 billion

Note: Forbes lists individual fortunes only but when they are not sure which member of the family owns the fortune or how it is divided among them, they list the person who created or controls the fortune, followed by "& family".

Zaire/Congo

Mobutu may never have personally owned enough of his country's wealth to be a billionaire

Although currently the only billionaires in sub-Saharan Africa are White South Africans, there is an evidence that during the 20th century, Zaire/Congo, may not only have had a billionaire, but a Black one. Although no one with any known degree of Sub-Saharan ancestry appeared on Forbes billionaire list until 2001, a Forbes editor has gone on record claiming that Mobutu was probably a billionaire but the magazine could never confirm it. CNN.com reported that Mobutu may have been worth as much as $5 billion, an amount almost equivalent to his country's foreign debt during the 1980s (the time the wealth was allegedly acquired), and, by 1989, the government was forced to default on international loans from Belgium. He owned a fleet of Mercedes-Benz vehicles that he used to travel between his numerous palaces, while many of his people starved. Infrastructure virtually collapsed, and many public service workers went months without being paid. Most money was siphoned off to Mobutu, his family, and top political and military leaders. Only the Special Presidential Division — on whom his physical safety depended — was paid adequately or regularly. A popular saying that the civil servants pretended to work while the state pretended to pay them expressed this grim reality. However when one of Mobutus's Swiss Bank accounts was investigated, only $3.4 million was found leading to speculation that the money was spent, or that the claims that he looted his country's fortune were politically motivated. While many believe that Mobutu actually did steal billions, in an effort to evade detection, the fortune may have been split among so many friends, family members, and government officials, that no single individual in Zaire ever qualified as a billionaire.

Controversies

Unverified claims

Donald V. Watkins, an African-American businessman/attorney originally from Birmingham, AL who now resides in Miami, FL claims also to be one of the richest African-Americans, though some dispute this claim. His wealth was estimated between $1.4 - $1.5 billion in 2002 when he attempted to purchase The Minnesota Twins professional baseball franchise. In 2003, Watkins attempted to purchase The Anaheim Angels, but as with The Minnesota Twins, the deal ultimately didn't go through. Watkins's wealth has increased since then and is reportedly around $2.5 billion (Watkins hasn't confirmed or denied this figure.), which would make him the richest African-American to date. If verified, Watkins's wealth would predate that of both Oprah Winfrey and Robert L. Johnson, though he has never once been listed as a billionaire by Forbes nor has he ever appeared on Forbes ranking of the 400 richest Americans which in the past required much less than a billion dollars for membership. Watkins himself has stated he has no need or desire to be "listed." According to Watkins, "There are only 12 investment bankers that have the expertise to properly calculate my net worth. But this isn't about how much money I make. I don't work for money. Money is not happiness. The fulfillment of achieving goals is happiness. Money doesn't motivate me, but achievement does." "He's riding around the country saying he's a billionaire," says Jimmy Blake, a political adversary of Watkin's. "No one knows how he got it. I don't believe anyone thinks he's got it.

On February 6th, 2003, it was shown in interview that Martin Bashir questioned Michael Jackson on how much he was worth. Bashir stated "How much do you think you're worth?" Jackson replied "It's way up there". After more communication, Bashir asked "A billion dollars?" to which Jackson replied "It's over there". Bashir asked for confirmation: "Over a billion dollars!" to which Jackson replied "Yes". When the interview was aired in the United States, broadcaster Barbara Walters replied, saying, “As for his claim to be worth over a billion dollars,” Walters explained, “industry sources tell us that Jackson’s last CD was not profitable and that his actual worth is in the two or three hundred million range. That’s hardly bad, but it’s nowhere near a billion”. Deputy District Attorney Ron Zonen called Jackson a “self-proclaimed billionaire”, and during Jackson's trial defense attorney Thomas Mesereau Jr. said that the Beatles catalogue (of which Jackson owns 50%) was worth $1 billion in 2003. There have been estimates it's now worth between $4 billion and $5 billion , but forensic accountant John Duross O'Bryan testified that the total value of Jackson's assets was $130 million.

Michael Jackson has never appeared on Forbes international billionaire list nor has he ever been ranked among Forbes 400 richest Americans, a list which has often required less than even half a billion for membership. When Forbes editor Peter Newcomb was asked in 2003 to explain Jackson’s absence from their lists he replied “MJ owes $250 to $300 million to a consortium of banks; you will see him selling his publishing company any month now, my prediction”.

Allegations of racism

Reports have surfaced that even Black billionaires are not immune to the racism faced by everyday Blacks. In 2001, then Black billionaire Bob Johnson accused Sen. Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y of racism when Schumer attempted to block Johnson’s efforts to start “DC Air," a regional airline that would include slots in New York City and reach airports in upstate New York.

Johnson sent Schumer a letter reading:

As an African-American businessperson who has a personal net worth significantly greater than the market capitalization of [rival companies] Jet Blue and Air Tran combined, I am offended that you could argue that these two companies deserve an opportunity that should be denied to me.

It cannot be that you believe that they are better businesspersons; perhaps it is because they are white businesspersons.

Schumer's office released a statement saying the senator’s decision was based on "how it would benefit the people of New York, not on the basis of any political or racial consideration."

Racism was also suspected when Oprah Winfrey was denied entrance to Hermès’ Paris flagship store when she arrived only fifteen minutes after the formal closing time, despite the fact that the store was still very active and despite the tradition of high-end stores routinely extending hours for VIP customers. In living rooms and Internet chat rooms across America, Winfrey’s case sparked discussion of what many see as a serious problem of Blacks receiving poor treatment or outright suspicion no matter how well-educated or rich they are - particularly in high-end stores. "The presumption in America is that if you have the wealth, you'll get equality - but where's Oprah's equality?" asked Bruce D. Haynes, a sociologist at the University of California, Davis. "It picks up on every inkling of discrimination that a black person might experience in daily life." Haynes added: "Many people are saying, 'I don't have the money, but Oprah represents what I could be. … She's like the black Donald Trump. And if it can happen to Oprah, it could happen to anyone."

It's simple, Derrick K. Baker writes in a Houston Chronicle commentary: "While liberals and fairy-tale-living Republicans might be inclined to believe that financial prosperity and global humanitarianism are great equalizers and neutralizers of all things racial, black skin sadly remains the great diminisher."

In September 2005, Hermès CEO Robert Chavez appeared on Winfrey’s show to apologize for the incident.

Racism has also been blamed for derailing the careers of Blacks who appeared headed for billionaire status. Author and activist Dick Gregory says “Michael Jackson did something that no one thought a Black man would do. He purchased the Beatles catalog for $48 million and today it is worth $1.5 billion. He didn’t know when he bought it that the Beatles owned Little Richard’s music. Michael gave it back to Little Richard, who is very happy now. Michael also owns the Elvis Presley catalogs. A Black man owns (the music of) two of the most important music figures in the world and anytime something is played by either of them, Michael gets paid…He’s a good man and I feel that he’s been the target of a conspiracy to destroy his career. In my opinion, there are people who have a financial interest in bringing Michael down.” When BET.com posted an image of Michael Jackson in handcuffs with the heading “Black America is spitting mad” readers commented that “The public is lynching our men” and “No matter how much money you have…society will remind you that you can only go as far as they [whites] will let you.”

Pioneers

Madam C.J. Walker

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Like Madam C.J. Walker, Winfrey became both the richest African American and America's richest self-made woman.

Madam C.J. Walker

Although black people have never been more than half of a percent of the world’s billionaires, two black people have held the title of richest self-made woman in America, and those same two women simultanieously held the title of richest African American. The first was Madam C.J. Walker, a black woman who became America’s first self-made woman millionaire and the richest African-American of her day. The second was Oprah Winfrey who in 2007 overtook Ebay CEO Margaret Whitman as the richest self-made woman in America and was described by Forbes as the richest African American of the 20th century. Like Walker, Winfrey is one of the greatest philanthropists of her time. Although Winfrey's show is known for raising money through her public charity and the cars and gifts she gives away on TV are often donated by corporations in exchange for publicity, behind the scenes Winfrey personally donates more of her own money to charity than any other show business celebrity in America. In 2005 she became the first black listed by Business Week as one of America's top 50 most generous philanthropists, having given an estimated $250 million. Despite being the 235th richest American in 2005, Winfrey was the 32nd most philanthropic. Much of Winfrey's charity goes towards educating girls in South Africa while Walker's philanthropy supported the NAACP, the Tuskegee Institute and Bethune-Cookman College.

Reginald Lewis

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Reginald Lewis created the first billion dollar black business.

After working at several law firms, Reginald F. Lewis opened TLC Group L.P., a venture capital firm, in 1983. In 1987 Lewis bought Beatrice International Foods from Beatrice Companies for $985 million, renaming it TLC Beatrice International, a snack food, beverage, and grocery store conglomerate that was the largest black-owned and black-managed business in the U.S. The deal was partly financed through Mike Milken. When TLC Beatrice reported revenue of $1.8 billion in 1987, it became the first black-owned company to have more than $1 billion in annual sales.

At its peak in 1996, TLC Beatrice International Holdings Inc. had sales of $2.2 billion and was number 512 on Fortune magazine's list of 1,000 largest companies.

His net-worth was estimated by Forbes magazine as being $400 million making him the richest African-American ever at the time of his death. Lewis was among the first African-Americans to make Forbes magazine's list of the 400 richest Americans and his wife Loida Nicolas-Lewis the first Asian woman on the list

References

John H. Johnson

See also

• Lists of billionaires
• List of countries by the number of billionaires