On Monday Forbes released its record breaking 2017 list of billionaires. The list included 2,043 of the richest people in the world, the first time the list included more than 2,000 people, with a total net worth of $7.61 trillion, also a record according to Forbes.
But while the list included many unprecedented increases, the number of Black billionaires actually decreased from 2016. Ten of the 2043 listed were Black, down from 12 the previous year.
The decrease was the result of Nigerian oil tycoon Femi Otedola and cement mogul Abdulsamad Rabiu losing their spots on the list due to “plunging share prices” and the “devaluation of Nigerian currency,” according to Forbes.
Of the 10 richest Black people in the world, three are American: Oprah, Michael Jordan, and investor Robert Smith.
Joining Oprah as Black women billionaires are Nigeria’s only female billionaire, Folorunsho Alakija and Africa’s richest woman, Angolan investor Isabel Dos Santos.
