Top 10 Richest Sheikhs in The World 2024
Richest Sheikhs in The World and Their Net Worth. As stereotypical and as clichéd as it may sound, the truth remains that the Arab region boasts of several rich sheiks, most of whom hail from the United Arab Emirates.
Many of these sheiks draw the majority of their wealth from the energy industry thanks to the huge abundance of crude oil reserves that pervade the region.
Some have also diversified their holdings and interests to areas that go beyond oil, thus further strengthening their bottom-line.
With the wealth garnered, many of these individuals live a life of relative luxury. Some have also committed to giving back to society through various philanthropic gestures.
The Top 10 Richest Sheikhs in The World and Their Net Worth.
10. Faisal Bin Qassim Al Thani Net Worth: $1.4 Billion
Some of the richest sheikhs in the world owe their wealth to family patronage and assistance. It is, however, a different ball game when it comes to Faisal Bin Qassim Al Thani. The foremost Qatari businessman is a self-made billionaire who has managed to achieve his status by sheer dint of hard work.
As the story goes, Al Thani began his entrepreneurial life as a car parts seller in Doha at the age of 16. From there, he became the sole distributor of Bridgestone Tires in his country and soon started a small trading company with a startup capital that he had gotten.
This was in the 60s and in the intervening period, Al Faisal Holdings has grown into one of the largest conglomerates in Qatar.
The company has several subsidiaries and their interests spread to areas such as manufacturing, trading, services, transport, entertainment, and education.
One of their major subsidiaries is the Al Rayan Tourism & Investment Company (ARTIC) which has more than 25 hotels spread across the Middle East, North Africa, Europe, and the United
States of America.
9. Abdulla Al Futtaim Net Worth: $2.1 Billion
Al Futtaim is the founder of Al Futtaim Group, a company that employs about 44,000 employees and has interests in several sectors, including the automotive, electronics, insurance, services, real estate, and retail industries.
The group’s {rst taste of success came with their motor division which was able to nab deals to become the exclusive distributors of Toyota vehicles in the U.A.E in the 50s. Toyota accounts for 30% of the auto market in the Emirates and this predictably made the company’s revenue soar.
With the profits made from the auto sector, the Al Futtaim Group has founded the largest insurance company in the UAE known as Orient.
They have also been able to make some smart franchising deals with the license to operate Hertz, Ikea, Toys “R” Us, ACE, and Zara Stores in the UAE. The Al Futtaim Group has also extended its influence beyond the Middle East.
They have purchased not less than 27 Marks & Spencer stores in Hong Kong and Macau, bringing their worldwide total to over 73.
8. Hussain Sajwani Net Worth: $2.3 Billion
Hussain Sajwani has been described as the Donald of Dubai and the reason for this is that he is the chairman of one of the foremost luxury real estate property developers in the city – Damac Properties.
Sajwani first dabbled into real estate while in college, selling time-share apartments. He later landed a job in the corporate world upon graduation and spent two years in that role before deciding to become a catering business contractor.
Another thriving arm of Sajwani’s business empire is his investment company. His private investment firm, Vision Investments, acquired Italian fashion group Roberto Cavali in 2019.
7. Suhail Salim Bahwan Net Worth: $2.3 Billion
Bahwan didn’t come by his fortune overnight but had to build it up over the course of several years. As the story goes, he dropped out of school in 1952 (at the age of 15) and started sailing trading ships, known as Dhow, to India.
On the trip, he took dates and fish, and while coming back, he brought rice, oil, and clothes. All of these items were sold by Suhail and he was thus was able to garner the revenue with which he purchased a second ship and diversified his business into building materials by 1955.
In 1965, Suhail and his younger brother Saud set up a shop selling building materials and fishing nets in the Omani capital of Muscat. Buoyed by the economic development in the country in the 60s and 70s, the brothers were able to obtain licenses to sell Seiko and Toyota goods exclusively.
