Source: World's Richest Women – Forbes.com
1. Christy Walton & family
$20 billion
Wal-Mart. Jackson, Wyo. 54.
Widowed, 2 child
The widow of Wal-Mart scion John Walton, who died in plane crash in 2005
2. Alice Walton
$19.5 billion
Wal-Mart. Fort Worth, Texas. 59.
Divorced
Father Sam and Uncle James started general-store chain in Bentonville, Ark., in 1962
3. Liliane Bettencourt
$15 billion
L’Oreal. Paris. 86.
Widowed, one child.
Daughter of L’Oreal founder Eugene Schueller
4. Susanne Klatten
$12 billion
BMW, drugs. Germany. 46.
Married, three children
Klatten inherited her stake in BMW from her late father, Herbert Quandt. Recently increased her stake in pharmaceutical and chemical manufacturer Altana to 88%; trained economist sits on Altana’s board of supervisors.
5. Birgit Rausing
Packaging. Switzerland. 85.
Widowed, three children
$11 billion
Inherited packaging giant Tetra Laval in 2000 after the death of her husband, Gad Rausing. Father-in-law founded the company in 1944
6. Jacqueline Mars
$9.5 billion
Candy, pet food. Bedminster, N.J. 69.
Divorced, three children
Chocolate maker Mars completed purchase of gum giant Wm. Wrigley Jr. Co. last October for $23 billion. Merger created world’s largest confectionery company. Also owns pet food operation (Whiskas, Pedigree), Uncle Ben’s Rice.
7. Anne Cox Chambers
$9 billion
Cox Enterprises. Atlanta. 90.
Divorced, three children.
Surviving daughter of Cox Enterprises founder James M. Cox (d. 1957); sister Barbara Cox Anthony passed away in 2007.
8. Abigail Johnson
$8.5 billion
Fidelity Investments. Boston. 47.
Married, two children
Harvard MBA moving up the ranks in family’s Fidelity Investments. This June “Abby” took charge of the company’s board governing the investment company’s fixed-income and asset-allocation funds.
9. Savitri Jindal
$6 billion
Steel. India. 58.
Widowed, nine children
Late husband died in a helicopter crash in 2005. Today she serves as the non-executive chairperson of steel and power conglomerate O.P. Jindal group.
10. Charlene de Carvalho-Heineken
$5.5 billion
Heineken. London. 54.
Married, five children
Inherited 25% stake in Dutch brewer Heineken seven years ago from her late father, Freddy Heineken. Company is one of the world’s great brewers, with more than 170 premium brands in more than 65 countries.
11. Pauline MacMillan Keinath
$5.5 billion
Cargill. St. Louis. 75.
Married, four children.
Family’s massive commodities outfit, Cargill, controls food from stable to table: manufactures animal feed, meat, crops.
12. Marion MacMillan Pictet
$5.5 billion
Cargill. Bermuda. 77.
Divorced, one child.
13. Antonia Johnson
$5 billion
Trading. Stockholm. 66.
Married, four children
Since 1982 has headed Axel Johnson Group, a diversified trading company founded by her great-grandfather in 1873.
14. Johanna Quant
$5 billion
BMW. Germany. 82.
Widowed, two children
Former secretary and third wife of the late Herbert Quandt, the German executive who rescued automaker BMW from bankruptcy.
15. Yang Huiyan
$4.8 billion
Real estate. China. 27.
Married
China’s richest woman graduated from Ohio State University with a degree in marketing and logistics. Joined family property developer, Country Garden, in 2005 as the manager of the procurement department.
16. Dorothea Steinbruch
$4.8 billion
Companhia Siderurgica Nacional. Brazil.
Widowed, three children
With children, controls one of Brazil’s largest steelmakers.
17. Blair Parry-Okeden
$4.5 billion
Cox Enterprises. Australia. 58.
Married, two children.
Granddaughter of James M. Cox (d. 1957) inherited 25% stake in company after mother, Barbara Anthony Cox, died in 2007
18. Shari Arison
$3.2 billion
Carnival Cruise lines, banking. Tel Aviv. 51.
Married, four children.
Inherited two of the country’s largest companies for her father: $75 billion (assets) Bank Hapoalim and infrastructure behemoth Housing & Construction. Also owns large chunk of cruise operator Carnival
19. Heidi Horten
$3 billion
Department stores. Vienna. 68.
Widowed
Apparently met Helmut Horten, founder of eponymous German department store chain, in a hotel bar in 1959 when she was 19 years old.
20. Rosalia Mera
$2.9 billion
Inditex. La Coruna, Spain. 64.
Divorced, two children.
Self-made billionaire helped then-husband Amancio Ortega make dressing gowns and lingerie in their home. Home business became Inditex, one of world’s most successful apparel manufacturers.
36,650 crore).
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