Here’s what Trump’s victory did to South Africa’s richest people
While the shock win by Donald Trump in the US elections has caused quite an upset for the world’s top billionaires, South Africa’s richest people were left smiling.
Markets slumped on Wednesday following the surprise election result, as a Trump presidency is shrouded in uncertainty, with no clear policy direction on trade and foreign markets.
The global economy had largely priced in a Clinton victory.
Data tracked by Bloomberg showed the world’s top billionaires losing $41 billion on Wednesday, following Trump’s victory.
This almost completely undid a $57 billion gain earlier in the week when polls suggested that democrat leader, Hillary Clinton would win the elections.
Mexico’s richest man, Carlos Slim, led the losses with a 10.5% decline in his wealth – wiping $5.8 billion from his fortune.
Top US billionaires also felt the pain, losing a combined $9.3 billion.
Forbes’ real time data showed how South Africa’s wealthiest people profited from Trump’s victory.
The only exception is Richemont chairman, Johann Rupert, who has conflicting data, because of the different metrics used by Bloomberg and Forbes.
Forbes’ data shows that Rupert’s net worth increased by $23 million (+0.4%) between the 8th and the 9th of November – however, Bloomberg’s data showed a decline of $61 million in Rupert’s fortunes.
Rupert is the only South African businessman included in Bloomberg’s top 100 billionaires index.
Richemont has seen a massive decline in earnings in recent months which has led the company to scrap scrap the role of chief executive. The company will instead be managed by a team of senior executives on the board, led by Rupert who founded Richemont with his father Anton.
The change in wealth of South Africa’s richest people between 8 and 9 November 2016 is reflected below:
| # | Billionaire | Net worth (US$) | Change (US$) | Change (%) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Nicky Oppenheimer | $6.9 billion | +$15 million | +0.2% |
| 2 | Christo Wiese | $6.2 billion | +$156 million | +2.6% |
| 3 | Johann Rupert | $5.8 billion | +$23 million | +0.4% |
| 4 | Koos Bekker | $3.2 billion | +$6 million | +0.2% |
| 5 | Allan Gray | $2.1 billion | – | – |
| 6 | Patrice Motsepe | $1.7 billion | +$48 million | +2.9% |
| 7 | Stephen Saad | $1.3 billion | +$102 million | +8.4% |
Read: What Trump as US president means for us in South Africa
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