South Africa is home to six billionaires – with the average South African needing to work for thousands of years to match their wealth. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
According to the Forbes World’s Billionaire List for 2024<\/a>, Johann Rupert is South Africa’s richest man (162nd worldwide), with a net worth of $12.2 billion (R229.5 billion). <\/p>\n\n\n\n Rupert’s wealth is mainly linked to Swiss luxury goods firm Compagnie Financiere Richemont. <\/p>\n\n\n\n The richest man in the world, LVMH’s Bernard Arnault – $223 billion (R4.1 trillion) – is also in the luxury goods business. <\/p>\n\n\n\n Diamond magnate Nicky Oppenheimer is the second richest South Africa, with his net worth, like Rupert’s, rising by $1.1 billion (R20.7 billion) to $9.5 billion (R178.7 billion), according to Forbes.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Mining boss, and brother-in-law to President Cyril Ramaphosa, Patrice Motsepe saw his wealth remain unchanged at $2.7 billion (R50.8 billion). <\/p>\n\n\n\n Naspers chair Koos Bekker and Capitec founder Michiel Le Roux saw their wealth increase by $0.2 billion (R3.8 billion) to $2.6 billion(R48.9 billion) and $1.2 billion(R22.6 billion), respectively. <\/p>\n\n\n\n Ex-Steinhoff chair Christo Wiese has returned to the billionaire ranking, with his most valuable source of wealth being his interest in Shoprite: <\/p>\n\n\n\n Average salary time <\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n This wealth is often challenging for the everyday person to comprehend due to how large these numbers are. <\/p>\n\n\n\n When comparing these figures to the average salary in South Africa, this wealth can be shocking, especially in a country with the highest income inequality in the world. <\/p>\n\n\n\n According to Stats SA’s latest Quarterly Employment Survey<\/a>, the average monthly earnings in South Africa increased by 1.6% quarter-on-quarter to R26,894 per month in November 2023. <\/p>\n\n\n\n If the average earner in South Africa could somehow manage to put their full salary away every month, it would take them 700,000 years to accumulate Johann Rupert’s wealth. <\/p>\n\n\n\n It would take just over 550,000 years to accumulate Nicky Oppenheimer’s wealth. <\/p>\n\n\n\n It would take over 150,000 years to accumulate Motsepe and Bekker’s wealth and around 70,000 years to accumulate Le Roux and Wiese’s wealth. <\/p>\n\n\n\nBillionaire<\/strong><\/td> 2023<\/strong> Wealth<\/strong><\/td> 2024<\/strong> Wealth<\/strong><\/td> Change<\/strong><\/td><\/tr> Rupert<\/td> $11.1 billion (R208.7 billion)<\/td> $12.2 billion (R229.5 billion)<\/td> $1.1 billion (R20.7 billion)<\/mark><\/td><\/tr> Oppenheimer<\/td> $8.4 billion (R158 billion)<\/td> $9.5 billion (R178.7 billion)<\/td> $1.1 billion (R20.7 billion)<\/mark><\/td><\/tr> Motsepe<\/td> $2.7 billion (R50.8 billion)<\/td> $2.7 billion (R50.8 billion)<\/td> –<\/td><\/tr> Bekker<\/td> $2.4 billion (R45.1 billion)<\/td> $2.6 billion (R48.9 billion)<\/td> $0.2 billion (R3.8 billion)<\/mark><\/td><\/tr> Le Roux<\/td> $1.0 billion (R18.8 billion)<\/td> $1.2 billion (R22.6 billion)<\/td> $0.2 billion (R3.8 billion)<\/mark><\/td><\/tr> Wiese<\/td> –<\/td> $1.2 billion (R22.6 billion)<\/td> –<\/td><\/tr><\/tbody><\/table><\/div><\/figure>\n\n\n\n