Carlos Slim

Carlos Slim Helú was born in Mexico City on 28 January 1940. He amassed his wealth through Grupo Carso, a conglomerate with holdings across education, health care, manufacturing, media, mining, retail, and more - but the real engine was telecommunications. His acquisition of Telmex, a former state-run phone company, gave him a virtual monopoly for years; paired with Telcel and América Móvil's reach across Latin America, the trio became the core of a fortune that vaulted him to the top of the Forbes list from 2010 to 2013. By 2016 he held the largest single stake in non-voting shares of the New York Times Company, selling half a year later. As of July 2025, Bloomberg pegged his net worth at $99.1 billion - 18th in the world, first in Latin America, accounting for 40 percent of the Mexican Stock Exchange's listings.