These 8 billionaires have the combined wealth of half the world's population

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1. Bill Gates — $88 billion

1. Bill Gates — $88 billion

Bill Gates co-founded Microsoft in 1975, and has continued his involvement with the company as a technology advisor and board member. Gates also has investments in Canadian National Railway, AutoNation, and more. He and his wife Melinda founded the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation which aims to help kindergarten through 12th grade students in the US.

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2. Amancio Ortega — $83 billion

2. Amancio Ortega — $83 billion

Amancio Ortega is the wealtheist man in Europe, and co-founded fashion retailer Zara's parent company Inditex in 1975. His real-estate portfolio includes properties in London, New York, Madrid.

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3. Jeff Bezos — $81 billion

3. Jeff Bezos — $81 billion

Founder and CEO of Amazon.com, Jeff Bezos owns nearly 17% of the company and in 2013 he purchased the Washington Post for $250 million.

4. Warren Buffet — $76 billion

4. Warren Buffet — $76 billion

Wildly successful investor Warren Buffet is CEO of Berkshire Hathaway which owns over 60 companies. Although he still lives a somewhat modest lifestyle, he became a billioniare at age 32. In 2010, Buffet, alonside Bill Gates, created The Giving Pledge — promising to donate at least half of their fortunes to charities.

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5. Carlos Slim Helu and family — $64 billion

5. Carlos Slim Helu and family — $64 billion

Carlos Slim Helu controlls Latin America's largest mobile telecom firm, América Móvil, of which he is a chairman. Helu also owns stakes in various mining, real estate, and consumer goods businesses — including The New York Times. He is the richest man in Mexico.

6. Mark Zuckerberg — $61 billion

6. Mark Zuckerberg — $61 billion

Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg founded the website in his Harvard dormroom 13 years ago and has since grown his net worth to $61 billion. He and his wife, Priscilla Chan, have committed to give away 99% his wealth before he dies.

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7. Larry Ellison — $54 billion

7. Larry Ellison — $54 billion

In 1977 Larry Ellison co-founded the software company Oracle, which originally was launched with $2,000 of funding, $1,200 of which came out of Ellison's own pocket. Ellison stepped down as CEO in 2014, but continues to be involved with the company.

8. Bernard Arnault — $54 billion

8. Bernard Arnault — $54 billion

Bernard Arnault has been the CEO of LVMH, which houses brands such as Louis Vuitton, Sephora, and Dom Perignon, since 1989. Combined, the brands under LVMH sold $40 billion in sales in 2016.

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