The Top 10 Richest Black People In The World 2025

On Tuesday, Forbes released its annual World’s Billionaires list, setting new records in both size and total wealth.

Of the 3,028 billionaires on this year’s list, 23 are Black, just 0.8% of the total. Forbes reports that these Black billionaires command a combined net worth of $96.2 billion, with fortunes rooted primarily in finance, energy, and technology.

While many familiar faces are present, the rankings have changed a little since the last time we checked in. Notably, Aliko Dangote reclaimed the top spot after being surpassed by David Steward last year. Oprah Winfrey remains the only woman in the top 10 richest Black billionaires, while Alexander Karp, CEO of Palantir Technologies, is a new addition to the top 10.

So here they are, the 10 richest Black people on the planet:

1. Aliko Dangote

• Net Worth:  $23.9 billion 
• Country: Nigeria
• Wealth Source: Cement, Sugar
• Overall rank: 83

Aliko Dangote is the founder and chairman of Dangote Cement, Africa’s largest cement producer. He also founded Dangote Refinery, the largest petroleum refinery in Africa. Under construction since 2016, the refinery began operations in early 2024, boosting Dangote’s fortune by $10.5 billion over the past year.

2. David Steward

• Net Worth: $11.4 billion
• Country: USA
• Wealth Source: IT Provider
• Overall rank: 213

David Steward, the richest Black American, has a perfect 10 on Forbes’ self-made scorecard. Steward grew up in the segregated South with seven siblings, and his father worked as a mechanic, janitor, and trash collector. In 1990, he co-founded World Wide Technology, an IT services company with major clients like Citi and Verizon. He still serves as chairman. Today, the company has nearly 10,000 employees and brings in $20 billion in annual revenue. He is one of just four Black Americans on The Forbes 400 list of the richest people in the US.

3. Robert F. Smith

• Net Worth: $10.8 billion
• Country: USA
• Wealth Source: Private Equity
• Overall rank: 230

In 2000, Robert F. Smith founded Vista Equity Partners, now the largest Black-owned private equity firm in the US, with over $100 billion in assets under management. He still leads the firm, which employs more than 700 people and invests exclusively in software companies. He recently partnered with Blackstone to acquire Smartsheet for $8.4 billion, marking one of the largest recent acquisitions in the software space.

4. Alexander Karp

• Net Worth: $8.4 billion
• Country: USA
• Wealth Source: Software Firm
• Overall rank: 361

Alexander Karp is the co-founder and CEO of Palantir Technologies, a data analytics company that works with clients like the FBI, the Department of Defense, and other government agencies. The company received early funding from In-Q-Tel, the CIA’s investment arm. Palantir went public in 2020 and now has a market value of nearly a billion.

5. Mike Adenuga

• Net Worth: $6.8 billion
• Country: Nigeria
• Wealth Source: Telecom, Oil
• Overall rank: 498

Mike Adenuga, Nigeria’s second-richest person, built his fortune through telecom and oil. He made his first $1 million at age 26 by selling lace and distributing soft drinks. Today, his mobile network, Globacom, is Nigeria’s second-largest, with over 60 million subscribers. His oil company, Conoil Producing, operates six oil blocks in the Niger Delta.

6. Abdulsamad Rabiu

• Net Worth: $5.1 billion
• Country: Nigeria
• Wealth Source:  Cement, Sugar
• Overall rank: 700

Abdulsamad Rabiu is the founder, chairman, and CEO of BUA Group, one of Nigeria’s leading industrial conglomerates with operations in cement, sugar, and real estate. He launched the company in 1988 and has overseen its growth into a major player in West Africa’s economy. Through his foundation, the Abdul Samad Rabiu Initiative, he supports education, healthcare, and development programs across the continent.

7. Michael Jordan

• Net Worth: $3.5 billion
• Country: USA
• Wealth Source: Business, Sports
• Overall rank: 1045

Widely regarded as the greatest basketball player of all time, Michael Jordan won six NBA championships with the Chicago Bulls. Though he earned $90 million in salary during his playing career, his real fortune came off the court—pulling in more than $2.4 billion (pretax) from brand deals with Nike, Hanes, Gatorade, and others. Jordan’s business portfolio has grown over the years. In 2023, he sold his majority stake in the Charlotte Hornets in a deal that valued the team at $3 billion.

8 (tie). Patrice Motsepe

• Net Worth: $3 billion
• Country: South Africa
• Wealth Source: Metals and mining
• Overall rank: 1219

Patrice Motsepe is the founder and chairman of African Rainbow Minerals, a diversified mining company with operations in South Africa and Malaysia. He became the first Black African billionaire on the Forbes list in 2008.

In 2016, Motsepe expanded his business interests by launching African Rainbow Capital, a private equity firm dedicated to investing across the African continent. He launched his digital bank TymeBank in 2019 and has already ammassed more than 7 million customers in South Africa alone.

8 (tie) Oprah Winfrey

• Net Worth: $3 billion
• Country: USA
• Wealth Source: Media, Entertainment
• Overall rank: 1219

Oprah Winfrey turned her 25-year run as host of The Oprah Winfrey Show into a sprawling media and business empire. She reinvested earnings from the show, along with profits from films like The Color Purple, Beloved, and Selma, co-produced by her company Harpo Productions, amassing an estimated fortune of over $2.5 billion. In 2011, she launched the Oprah Winfrey Network (OWN), and in 2020, sold most of her stake to Warner Bros. Discovery in exchange for company shares.

10. Jay-Z

• Net Worth: $2.5 billion
• Country: USA
• Wealth Source: Music, Business
• Overall rank: 1462

Since becoming hip-hop’s first billionaire in 2019, Jay-Z has more than doubled his fortune, driven by his high-end liquor ventures. In 2021, luxury giant LVMH bought a 50% stake in his champagne brand Armand de Brignac, also known as Ace of Spades. He followed that with a major deal in 2023, selling a majority share of his cognac label D’Usse to Bacardi. Beyond beverages, Jay-Z’s portfolio includes a valuable art collection featuring works by Jean-Michel Basquiat, his music catalog, and investments in companies like Block and Uber.

Image: David Steward (credit: United Way) Aliko Dangote (credit: Ernest Ankomah)/ Oprah Winfrey (credit: US Embassy South Africa)/ Robert F. Smith (credit: Chester Higgins Jr/ New York Times)