How to Become a Billionaire. By Jayke Umarezz

A S Johan - Billionaire Founder of The Richman's Club
Photo by A. Tsui - Hong Kong

The fastest way to become a billionaire is to start off with a few million dollars. 
A S Johan founder of The Richman's Club

There are many more ways to become a billionaire these days. The vast majority have become very rich through the traditional real estate route or through the current demand for technology companies. Essentially, the key remains founding and building a successful business from an idea and then selling a part through floating it on the stock market. This process allows their share holding in their company to have a notional monetary value.

So are these people any smarter than the average person or do they have some special talent or skill?

Extensive research has found that the special secret these people have that makes them millionaires and billionaires is they possess a different mindset, attitude, knowledge, persistence, and they take risks and consistent action.

It's that simple. Some of you reading this may be wondering what route you can take to become a millionaire or even a billionaire. Here are a few attributes you need.

First of all, you really need to set your mind to it. Commit and ask yourself what price you are willing to pay to get there. You do have to pay a price. There’s no free lunch.

Before we go further, remember there is no such thing as getting rich quick or getting rich overnight. There are many scams of course that will tell you otherwise; don’t believe anyone that tells you that you can become a millionaire without knowledge and work. It’s easier to get to where you want to go, if you can do something that is fun and enjoyable for you. Do something that you love to do, so that it isn’t just work but play and fun. And never, never give up!

These days there are countless ways to become a millionaire or a billionaire. Ways that did not exist in the days of the Rockefellers. You can become a billionaire in almost anything, the key is leverage, work smart and come up with a solid business idea. Then work your plan diligently and stay on course but be flexible. Obviously it’s easier if you are in business working for yourself.

Also, you need to constantly be learning. By that I don't mean getting any more degrees. I mean knowledge by reading more and learning from successful people by finding out what they do and where and how they invest. Go to seminars and workshops. Learn about trusts, estate planning, asset protection, life insurance and other wealth building strategies. It's well worth it if you make lots of money with all that knowledge.

Most people who think about wealthy individuals, for the most part feel envious. Thoughts of shady deals come to mind... in truth such thoughts will do you much harm. If you ever hope to attain the status of billionaire, you have to realize that the millionaire mind set is different. Men and women who rise to the top and stay there have a different thought process than everyone else. Instead of envying their wealth, it is time you embrace the thinking that has gotten them where they are today.

Be prepared to take big risks.

No one crossed a wide river by taking several steps. Ask any millionaire what they would do should they go bankrupt, and most will tell you it does not matter because they will be right back on top in no time at all. In fact, most if not, all millionaires have filed for bankruptcy at least once in their adult lives.

When the average person goes bankrupt it looks and feels to them like their world had ended. This again is contrary to the thought process of the millionaire mind. They think big. Just ask Donald Trump, the well known developer and definite billionaire who has flirted with bankruptcy several times in his business life.

Here is the story of someone I know who reached the billionaire mark recently.

I first interviewed Dr A S Johan in early 2007. At that time ASJ, as he prefers to be called, was a Hedge Funds, Private Equity and Venture Capital consultant to several companies and Middle Eastern High Net Worth Families.

ASJ was born in Malaysia to a Scottish father and a Malaysian mother. After his studies, he but spent much of his business career in Hong Kong in the financial services industry.

“Even as a kid I was fascinated with the magic of finance. At the age of ten, I used to save up my daily school pocket money and lend it to class mates for their weekend spending sprees –at an exorbitant interest rate of 100%”.

ASJ spent many years working in the stock and money brokerage industries and picked up extensive knowledge of financial markets and investment techniques.

“I used to think that finance was the only way I’d make my millions...and I did make several millions while in the industry. Till one transaction taught me that things can go very wrong even it was not my fault. So wrong in fact  that in late 2007, I had to seek legal protection against an adverse arbitration award over a share sale and purchase transaction”.

However, like a true billionaire, ASJ did not give up. He spent his few years of sabbatical studying books on positive thinking and devouring biographies of the world’s top self made billionaires.

“During this time, I offered so many people free advice on developing their business ideas for profit. I discovered that there is real satisfaction in really giving... i.e. without expecting anything in return. As I could not give money, I gave my time and knowledge”.

After the sabbatical, ASJ learned that several of the people he had advised, had successfully implemented their business ideas and had become quite wealthy. Naturally they were keen to in some way assist ASJ get back into the business world.

“By this time, I had realized that there was more to success in business than just within the finance industry. While researching the way people in the past became and stayed billionaires, I discovered one common fact. Most belonged to ‘groups’ or ‘clubs’ where members helped each other in unique ways. Membership gave them access to powerful politicians. In almost all cases their wealth was directly as a result of the special advantages they enjoyed through membership in these clubs”.

ASJ was so convinced with this discovery that he developed the idea of establishing a modern day club that would operate just like the business clubs of the past...but be able to meet the present day needs of members. ASJ leaned that such clubs were less about golf and tennis and much more about access to powerful persons in Government and business. Hence was born The Richman’s Club – named after one of ASJ’s Scottish ancestors.

“Around this time, and after I was well advanced in developing the concept of the Richman’s Club, I was introduced to a businessman from China. He told me that about ten years ago, he had purchased a large tract of land upon which he was licensed to build and run a Jockey Club, commercial horse racing and eco tourism”.

As public gambling on horse racing was still not allowed in China, the businessman was not convinced that he could afford to invest more of his own money to build a race course and profit from horse racing. He asked ASJ to help find him a buyer for the property.

“I told him that he should retain the land as gaming in some form would eventually come to China. At no cost, I provided him with a plan that could, in the meanwhile allow him to operate a viable horse racing business on the property. I suggested that if he aligned his Jockey Club and race course with my Richman’s Club, he could offer horse racing to members within the non gaming laws of China”.

After consulting with relevant  Government officials in China, the businessman agreed with ASJ’s suggestion that linking with the Richman’s Club could indeed benefit him. He however felt that he would prefer to have ASJ become a partner as he did not think he could develop and implement the plan on his own.

“I was really exited about the prospect of owning a part of this Jockey Club and race course project in China - as I was convinced that it would eventually pay off...big time. I decided to press my luck and said that unless I could have a majority interest, I would not be interested”.

ASJ eventually bought a majority equity stake in a holding company that owns the land and associated Jockey Club, horse racing and eco tourism licenses. ASJ financed the acquisition of his stake in cash without taking on any debt. This was achieved through the advance sale of  a certain number of Corporate Memberships in the Richman’s Club.

Owing to several significant recent changes in land laws in China resulting in the scarcity of large tracts of the land close to a major city, ASJ’s investments appreciated substantially. The enterprise value of the holding company that ASJ had invested in was recently valued at US$10,515,799,998 all within a few years.

ASJ’s stake in the company is now valued at US$6,330,511,594. His stake in the Richman’s Club has still not been valued but ASJ is already a billionaire. In order to bring in established race course management expertise to China, ASJ plans to divest a small portion of his stake in the holding company shares for around US$450 million in cash.

Readers may be inclined to think that luck played a big part in ASJ achieving his billionaire status in such a short time. However, what may not be obvious is that his luckiness was really the combination of many years of knowledge, determination and his willingness to take a big risk to seize a good opportunity when it came. END

Richman's Confirms Clubs List

Richman's Clubs with its ONE Club, WORLDWIDE Benefits mission to proactively expand and protect the business and commercial interests of its members by engaging with influential global and national political leaders in a luxurious and relaxed environment has finalized plans for the establishment of its Richman’s Clubs in the following politically or financially important international cities over  the next several years:-


Washington D.C., Hong Kong, Beijing, Shanghai, New Delhi, Moscow, London, Brussels, Buenos Aires, Canberra, Tokyo, Brasilia, Paris, Berlin, Dubai, Abu Dhabi, Bern, Riyadh, Doha, Monaco and Oslo.

Each city-specific Richman’s Club will accept a limited number of Corporate Platinum Members (CPMs) who will be entitled to nominate three (3) nominees each. 


CPM nominees enjoy full membership rights not just at their home club but at all Richman’s Clubs. Please see the Richman’s IMC information website at http://sites.google.com/site/richmansimc/ for worldwide membership benefits and costs.

The Real Secret to Remaining Young

IF YOU DON'T READ THIS TO THE VERY END, YOU’VE LOST A DAY IN YOUR LIFE. WHEN YOU HAVE FINISHED, DO A DEAR FRIEND A FAVOR…SEND IT ON.

George Carlin is 102 years young and here are his views on ageing first then how to stay young:-

Do you realize that the only time in our lives when we like to get old is when we're kids? If you're less than 10 years old, you're so excited about ageing that you think in fractions.

'How old are you?' ‘I’m four and a half!' You're never thirty-six and a half. You're four and a half, going on five! That's the key.

You get into your teens, now they can't hold you back. You jump to the next number, or even a few ahead.

'How old are you?' 'I'm going to be 16!' You could be 13, but hey, you're going to be 16! And then the greatest day of your life happens. You’re 21. Even the words sound like a ceremony. YOU’RE 21. YESSSS!!!

But then you turn 30. Oooohh! What happened there? Makes you sound like bad milk! He TURNED; we had to throw him out. There's no fun now, you're Just a sour-dumpling. What's wrong? What's changed?

You BECOME 21, you TURN 30, then you're PUSHING 40. Whoa! Put on the brakes, it's all slipping away. Before you know it, you REACH 50 and your dreams are gone.

But wait!!! You MAKE it to 60. You didn't think you would!

So you BECOME 21, TURN 30, PUSH 40, REACH 50 and MAKE it to 60. Phew!

You've built up so much speed now that you HIT 70! After that it's a day-by-day thing; you HIT Wednesday!

You get into your 80's and every day is a complete cycle; you HIT lunch then you REACH bedtime. And it doesn't end there. By the 90s, you start going backwards; 'I was JUST 92.'

Then a strange thing happens. If you make it over 100, you become a little kid again. 'I'm 100 a half. May you all make it to a healthy 100 and a half!!

HOW TO STAY YOUNG

1. Throw out nonessential numbers. This includes age, weight and height. Let the doctors worry about them. That is why you pay 'them'

2. Keep only cheerful friends. The grouches pull you down.

3. Keep learning. Learn more about the computer, crafts, gardening, whatever. Never let the brain idle. 'An idle mind is the devil's workshop.' And the devil's name is Alzheimer's.

4. Enjoy the simple things.

5. Laugh often, long and loud. Laugh until you gasp for breath.

6. Let the tears happen. Endure, grieve, and move on. The only person, who is with us our entire life, is ourselves. Be ALIVE while you are alive.

7. Surround yourself with what you love, whether it's family, pets, keepsakes, music, plants, and hobbies - whatever. Your home is your refuge.

8. Cherish your health: If it is good, preserve it. If it is unstable, improve it. If it is beyond what you can improve, get help.

9. Don't take guilt trips. Take a trip to the mall, even to the next city; to a foreign country but NOT to where the guilt is.

10. Tell the people you love that you love them, at every opportunity.

AND ALWAYS REMEMBER:

Life is not measured by the number of breaths we take, but by the moments that take our breath away.

Immigration Detention – A day in the life of a Richman’s Member

Vasiliy Ivanovich Chapayev (not his real name of course) was a top “C” level executive with the Chapayev Group in Moscow (not its real name either). The company, founded by Ivan’s great grandfather had survived all of Russia’s political and economic upheavals and was considered by many to be one of the most profitable private groups to benefit from Russian’s privatization of State Owned Enterprises. The group chose to remain privately held.

Ivan joined the company in 1997 after several years of working in London and South Africa. Even though still just 42 years young, Ivan rose to become the company’s youngest CEO ever. Although critics were quick to suggest family ties for his rapid rise, the truth was that Ivan was indeed a super manager. He successfully expanded the company’s business influence into the emerging markets of Asia and Latin America resulting in record profits for the company.

As the company grew Ivan delegated more of the day to day management to his senior executives but still traveled frequently to ensure that overseas deals were carefully structured and controlled.

Through some of Ivan’s contacts in Malaysia, the Chapayev Group had been offered a deal to acquire a significant interest in a large coal mining concession in Indonesia. If successful it would be the company’s first foray into Indonesia – a country that, Ivan was told, was attracting a lot of interest from big investors worldwide. Ivan also knew that several Australian and US companies were interested in the concession.

A high level meeting had been set up in Jakarta with senior Government officials and Ivan was to attend with his Malaysian friends. Ivan decided to fly to London from Moscow, finish some banking work, and then fly out to Jakarta. The Malaysians would meet him in Jakarta. They had all agreed to stay at one of the cities’ many five star hotels.

The flight from London was long but as Ivan was traveling first class, it was not too bad. The airline had a good supply of top of the line Vodka which Ivan did not refuse. The caviar was acceptable - but no where near what he usually ate in Moscow.

The 747 touched down at Jakarta International Airport around 5.45pm local time. The airport was also known as Jakarta International Airport Soekarno-Hatta after Soekarno, the first President of Indonesia, and Mohammad Hatta. the first vice-president.

As the plane taxied to its allotted gate the video monitor proudly informed Ivan that Jakarta International Airport had 150 check-in counters, 30 baggage carousels and 42 gates. Each sub-terminal had 25 check-in counters, 5 baggage carrousels and 7 gates – not bad for an emerging country Ivan mused to himself.

Ivan also wondered if his Malaysian friends had organized any special entertainment for him that evening. If the girls here were anything like the flight stewardesses who had served him, some evening entertainment would be quite acceptable to him.

At the immigration counters processing foreign passport holders, Ivan was shocked to see large queues of Caucasians and Chinese or maybe Japanese or Koreans - who could tell really. To Ivan, it looked like the whole world was arriving to do business in Indonesia. Mph! Better get that mining concession.

Ivan passed his passport to the immigration officer. “You are Russian national? From where did you start your flight to Indonesia” he asked as if it was a crime to be a Russian national. Ivan answered “Yes” to the first question and “London” to the second.

The seedy, bespectacled looking immigration officer looked at Ivan’s visa and up at Ivan several times before tapping on some keys on a computer. Ivan waited patiently while admiring an exceptionally tall Chinese girl at the next stall. The officer noted Ivan and smiled to reveal several decaying teeth.

The officer then picked up what looked like an intercom and said something in the local language. Within minutes another more senior looking officer, adorned with a lot of dubious looking medals, arrived at the counter. He stared at the junior officer’s monitor, shook his head and then took Ivan’s passport and said to Ivan “Mr. Vasiliy, could you please follow me.

“What seems to be the problem?” Ivan asked even as he followed the senior officer to a small cubicle behind the row of passport check booths. Ivan received no answer.

“Mr. Vasiliy, you will stay here till I come back. Your luggage will be collected for you. Let me have your return ticket and baggage tag” the officer said in an official tone. “Oh! Would you like something to drink. Unfortunately we don’t serve vodka” he said with a knowing smile.

“No thanks. Can you tell me what this is all about? I have important meetings tomorrow with your government officials and I have friends waiting for me at the hotel.” The officer did not seem impressed and said nothing. He left the room and locked the door on his way out.

After what seemed hours to Ivan, the officer arrived with two other men. One was in uniform but of a senior rank and the other in plain street clothes. The one without a uniform had close cropped hair and a vicious look. “Mr. Vasiliy it seems there is a problem. Our computers tell us that you are on an Interpol arrest list. So we have to detain you and wait for further instructions from our ministry of security.”

“There must be some mistake. I’m the CEO of the well known Chapayev Group in Moscow and a banker. I’m here on business till Thursday to meet with some of your government officials regarding a mining concession our company is interested to invest in. Here’s my business card and the names of the government officials I’m to meet tomorrow. You can check if you like. I’m sure all will be cleared up”.

The senior most officer took the card and the list. The guy without a uniform peeped at it over his shoulders. “Well Mr. Vasiliy anyone can claim anything. This card and list means nothing to us. We have to follow procedures. Indonesia too has to follow Interpol requests you know. So I’m sorry. We’lll arrange to transport you to our detention center soon. You’ll have to stay till we have instructions from the ministry. Would like a snack...we can only offer local snacks, no caviar.”

All laughed at the joke. “Can I be allowed to call my contacts? They may be able to convince you that I am who I say I am.”

The guy in plain clothes spoke at last. “Oh sure you can. Do you have a mobile phone that can work here? If not we can arrange for a local SIM card for you...but it may be a bit expensive at the airport.”

“Thanks my phone has roaming in Indonesia.” Ivan dialed the mobile phone number of Chan, his contact from Malaysia. After what seemed several switching connections around the world, there was an answer.

“CY here. Who’s calling? Ivan could barely here him. Seemed like Chan was at a club or something.

“This is Ivan from Moscow. Yes. I’ve arrived. No. I’ve been detained at Jakarta airport. What? No nothing like that. There seems to be some error here. They say my name is on an Interpol arrest list so they’ve detained me. Can you speak to someone and sort it out?. The background sounds were less now. Chan must have moved to the toilet or somewhere less noisy

“Ivan. I’m sorry to hear that. But its late. I can’t call anyone now. What? No. No, the best is I’ll try tomorrow morning and see if we can get a hold of some local lawyer to represent you. He’ll need to be paid a retainer.

Yah, I guess we’ll have to postpone the meetings. I’ll call tomorrow and cook up some excuse. Oh! No I cant ask them for help. If the ministry officials hear of your detention there’s no chance of any mining concession deal. Yah I know but hey I’ve got my fees to worry about too.” The phone went dead in Ivan’s hands.

This time the senior most officer in uniform spoke. “Any good? Guess not eh! Well don’t worry Mr. Vasiliy, you’re getting free accommodation and food while you’re our guest. If as you say its all a mistake, it will get sorted out in a week or so.”

A week! Hell. Ivan was not going to get stuck here like this for a week. He had things to do. Deals to close. Could anyone in Moscow do something? Ah! Yes. He could call the Russian Embassy. “I need to call my embassy here” he told the officer.

“Sure. Do you have the number? Okay go ahead.

Luckily Ivan’s secretary had saved the Russian Embassy number in Indonesia in his mobile phone directory. Ivan scrolled to “R” and after selecting Russian Embassy Indonesia hit the call button. After a few seconds a voice answered in Russian. A warm feeling crept into Ivan’s heart. Oh! Crap. It was a recording. The Embassy was closed.

As Ivan was scrolling to “R” he had noticed a saved number for Richman’s GlobalAssist. What a fool he had been. He should have called that first. He went to it and hit call. “Mr. Ivanovich, welcome to Richman’s GlobalAssist. I’m Gloria. How can we help you sir? Would you prefer to talk to me in English or should I pass you to my Russian colleague? ” Ivan felt blood rush to his brain. His heat beat quickened. He had at last found a friend.

“Errrr English is fine thanks Gloria” He explained to Gloria as clearly as he could the situation he was in. “Look Gloria, I have very important meetings tomorrow and cannot be detained like this. It’s a big mistake. Somehow a guy with a similar name has been confused for me. You have to get someone to sort this mess up.”

“Don’t worry sir. I’ll speak to our people and call you back very soon. Shall I call you on your mobile phone registered with us or some other number?” Ah! So that’s how Gloria knew his name when he called.

“No you can call me on my mobile. But please be fast. The battery is running low.”

“Understood. Relax I’m sure all will be sorted out soon.”

Ivan now looked at the three men in the room. This time he smiled at them. They appeared a but confused.

Twenty-five minutes later Ivan’s rang. He answered. “Sir. This is Gloria again. Our people have cleared the matter with Interpol. It was a mix-up of names as you said. Indonesian immigration will be notified and in an hours time our people in Jakarta will be at the airport to take you to your hotel. We have arranged to extend your check-in time so there’s no problem there. Have a nice evening.”

Ivan felt relief go right through his body for the first time in hours. Tension was slowly leaving his taunt body. He sat in one of the chairs in the room and relaxed. He smiled at the three men in the room. “OK gentlemen. I’m in your hands.”

Just then another uniformed officer, this time one carrying a weapon on his hip appeared at the door of the small room. He said something in Indonesian. The plain clothed guy asked him something. The armed guy showed him a slip of paper which seemed to put all three men at ease. “Mr. Vasiliy, it looks like you were right. You’ll be free to leave as soon as your friends come to pick you up. Sorry for any trouble but we are only doing our duty. Welcome to Indonesia”

It was past midnight. Ivan had showered, had a few stiff vodkas and was lying in a massive double bed in his hotel suite waiting for much needed sleep to come. He was alone. He thought back to the time when he had first heard about Richman’s. It was at a party he had attended in Moscow. His also remembered that his CFO Boris had said the membership price was too expensive. Ivan was glad he had overruled Boris.

As sleep drifted in, Ivan reminded himself to call and thank Gloria. Thought about the meeting and Chan came to mind. If Chapayev got the concession, agreement or not Ivan was determined to cut Chan’s commissions drastically or maybe give him nothing. Their brokerage agreement was set under Russian laws. Let Chan and his buddies try and sue Chapayev in a Russian court. Hah!

Urgent Travel - A day in the life of a Richman’s Member

It’s 11.00 am on a warm Tuesday in Houston, Texas. You turned 58 last week but don’t feel a day over 35. You’ve been CEO of Southern Mines Inc. for the last five years and during that time seen the company grow from strength to strength. You’ve been the key behind expansion of the company’s footprint and assets into new rich sources of minerals and metals from Australia to Mongolia. The board respects you and shareholders love you.

You need to travel urgently to Lagos, Nigeria. You needed to meet with a senior member of Government over some issues relating to Southern’s business in Nigeria. Some weeks ago you had asked your people to try and set up a meeting but after getting the usual runaround you decided to ask Richman’s if they could help.

Through members in Nigeria, a meeting was quickly set up with a deputy minister of the resources ministry at a party in Lagos. The meeting was to be on Thursday evening and was confirmed just two days ago.

You had asked May, your secretary, to get the company’s travel agents to book first class return tickets to Lagos and a five star hotel accommodation for three nights. In view of the short notice, the best she was able to do was get you on a waiting list for a flight going through Dubai –where you would have to wait eight hours in transit. May explained that the hotel booking was okay but only a standard room in the old wing was available.

You asked May what use it was to have a crappy hotel room when flights were not confirmed. What the hell was a waiting list anyway? You either were on a flight or not. And you were not. Frustrated, you dialed the Richman’s 24 hours Global Concierge Service number and punched your special code number. You were greeted by a pleasant female voice.

“Hi there. I’m Rebecca. How can I assist you today?” You explained what you wanted. You said you had to be in Lagos by Thursday and return early the following week.

Rebecca had said that your needs were perfectly clear and that you would have confirmation of your flight and hotel bookings by the close of business in Houston that same day. As promised you received voice and email confirmation that you would be flying from Houston at 10.00pm on Wednesday by private jet, and be in Lagos well in time for the meeting.

Ah! the joys of private jet travel. You recall that Southern had owned a jet once but had to sell it off at a loss during the Senate hearings on bank and auto bailouts. Few corporations these days wanted to be seen owning corporate jets or yachts.

As you relax and decide to finish some paperwork, you remember Rebecca asking if you may need any additional arrangements like bodyguards, personal secretaries or companions while in Lagos.

About: The Richman’s I M Club is the world’s first truly international private membership club whose principal mission is to proactively expand and protect the business and commercial interests of its members.

World’s 10 Richest People of All Time and How They Made Their Fortunes

The following article is sponsored by the Richman's Club and first appeared in Money and Finance and was written by Alex and heavily commented upon...

Who is the richest man of all time? No not Bill Gates or Warren Buffet. Not even close, though there's no denying they're very, very rich. The richest man of all time, when wealth is measured as a percentage of the national economy, was John D. Rockefeller, whose fortunes made Gates' and Buffet's look downright puny.

Keeping score of who's wealthier is like a spectator sport with Forbes magazine as its official referee. Last year, Forbes counted 946 billionaires (there are too many millionaires to count, so they don't bother with that anymore) with combined net worth of $3.5 trillion. That's larger than the GDP of Germany, the third largest economy in the world.

But the richest people ever belong in their own special club. These people (all men) have built fortunes of legendary proportions when calculated at the peak of their wealth. Here is the list of the 10 Richest People of All Time and How They Made Their Fortunes.

No. 1 John D. Rockefeller

Peak wealth: $318.3 billion (based on 2007 US dollar). Age at peak wealth: 74

As a young man, John Davison Rockefeller said that his two greatest ambitions were to make $100,000 and live to be 100. He died two months shy of his 98th birthday, but boy did he make good on the first goal.

Rockefeller wasn't born to a rich family. His father, William Avery "Big Bill" Rockefeller was a shiftless man who spent most of his times thinking up schemes to avoid actual work! Nevertheless, thanks to the guidance of his mom Eliza - a homemaker and devout Baptist - John D. grew up to be quite a hardworking man.

Rockefeller started out in business as a wholesale grocer and went on to found Standard Oil, which through shrewd business decisions and some say predatory and illegal practices, grew to be a gargantuan monopoly. At its peak, Standard Oil had about 90% of the market for refined oil (kerosene) in the United States (in the early days of Standard Oil, gasoline wasn't an important component of the oil industry - indeed, gasoline produced by the refineries were dumped in rivers because they were considered useless!)

In 1911, the US Supreme Court declared Standard Oil a monopoly under the Sherman Antitrust Act and ordered it to be broken up into 34 independent companies with different boards of directors. By that time, Rockefeller had long since retired from the company but still held a large percentage of shares. Ironically, the busting up of Standard Oil unlocked share values and his fortunes doubled overnight.

Rockefeller got his first job at 16 as a bookkeeper. In a move that portended his lifelong commitment to philanthropy, he tithed 10% of his income - from his first paycheck on - to charity. As his wealth grew, so did his charitable contributions. When he died in 1937, Rockefeller had given away half of his amassed fortune, and established philanthropic foundations to continue giving after his death.

No. 2 Andrew Carnegie

Peak wealth: $298.3 billion. Age at peak wealth: 68

Andrew Carnegie immigrated as a young child to Pittsburgh from Scotland and began working at 13 years old as a bobbin boy in a textile mill. He changed spools of threads for 12 hours a day, 6 days a week for a weekly wage of $2. At 16 years old, Carnegie became a telegraph messenger boy, and soon after was promoted to be a telegraph operator.

Carnegie became a personal assistant to Thomas Scott, superintendent of the Pennsylvania Railroad Company and learned the ins and outs of the railroad business. It was Carnegie who invented a brutally efficient way to clear the tracks after a railway accident: by burning the railroad car!

When he was 20, Carnegie mortgaged his mother's house and made his first gutsy investment of $500 for 10 shares of the Adams Express company - sort of the Fed Ex delivery company of the 1800s - and was handsomely rewarded. He then invested in a company making sleeping cars for the railway. By the time he was 30, Carnegie had expanded his investments to iron works, steamers, railroads, and oil well.

But the real money came from steel. In the late 1880s, Carnegie built his steel empire to become the world's largest manufacturer of steel rails, pig iron, and coke.

In 1901, at the age of 66, Carnegie retired by selling his shares to John Pierpont Morgan for more than $225 million (a large sum today and an astounding amount of money back then) in form of gold-bonds. When the bonds were delivered, a special vault had to be built to physically house them!

Carnegie was big proponent of philanthropy - in a famous 1889 essay "The Gospel of Wealth," he wrote that wealth should be distributed to promote welfare of other people and enrich society. True to his words, Carnegie gave away more than $350 million or almost 90% of his fortune.

Note: At the end of the Spanish American War, the United States bought the Philippines from Spain for $20 million. Carnegie was appalled at what he perceived to be an imperialist move and personally offered $20 million to the Philippines so it could buy its independence from the US (they didn't take him up on his offer).


No. 3 Nicholas II of Russia

Peak wealth: $253.5 billion. Age at peak wealth: 49

Nicholas II of Russia (born Nikolai Aleksandrovich Romanov) was the last Tsar of Russia. He ruled (badly) from 1894 until he was forced to abdicate in the Russian Revolution of 1917 by the Bolsheviks.

His reign was marked with anti-Semitic pogroms, a crushing defeat by Japan in the Russo-Japanese War, revolutions, internal unrests their bloody suppressions, undue influence by the mystic Rasputin and World War I. A year after he was deposed, Nicholas and his entire family were executed by Lenin's order.

The life of the last tsar of Russia was filled with fascinating myths, legends, and history - and readers interested in it are encouraged to read more about Nicholas II and the Romanovs. Suffice it to say that Nicholas II became the third richest man in history the old fashioned way: he inherited his wealth.

No. 4 William Henry Vanderbilt

Peak wealth: $231.6 billion. Age at peak wealth: 64

William Henry Vanderbilt had a pretty good start in life: he inherited nearly $100 million from his father, the railroad mogul Cornelius "The Commodore" Vanderbilt (if you want to read a rags to riches story, Cornelius' is pretty good - see below).

William Vanderbilt was groomed by his father to be a businessman (at times harshly - the imperious and domineering Cornelius liked to call his eldest son a "blockhead," "blatherskite," "sucker," and "good for nothing") and William turned out to be quite an able businessman. He expanded the family's railroad empire and thus the family fortune, finally earning his father's respect and friendship.

When William died in 1885, he was the richest man in the world.

No. 5 Osman Ali Khan, Asaf Jah VII

Peak wealth: $210.8 billion. Age at peak wealth: 50

Asaf Jah VII (whose given name was Osman Ali Khan Bahadur) was the last Nizam or ruler of the Princely State of Hyderabad and Berar, before it was invaded and annexed by India in 1948.

By most accounts, "His Exalted Highness" the Nizam of Hyderabad was a benevolent ruler who promoted education, science and development. He spent about one-tenth of his Principality's budget on education, and even made primary education compulsory and free for the poor. In his 37-year rule, Hyderabad witnessed the introduction of electricity, railways, roads, and other development projects.

In 1937, Asaf Jah VII was on the cover of Time Magazine, labeled as the richest man in the world.

No. 6 Andrew W. Mellon

Peak wealth: $188.8 billion. Age at peak wealth: 80

Andrew William Mellon was the son of a Pittsburgh banker Thomas Mellon (who founded the Mellon Bank). Andrew got his start early: he started a lumber company at the age of 17 and by the age of 27 had taken over his father's bank. He also got into oil, steel, shipbuilding, and construction business.

In 1921, President Warren G. Harding appointed the financier Mellon as the Secretary of the Treasury, where he served for 10 years (under three U.S. Presidents). At that post, Mellon increased federal revenue by decreasing the taxation rate and cutting federal spending

No. 7 Henry Ford

Peak wealth: $188.1 billion. Age at peak wealth: 57

If Henry Ford's father had his way, Henry would take over the family farm and become a farmer. But after the death of his beloved mother, Henry, who didn't particularly like farming, left home in 1879 at the age of 16 to work as an apprentice machinist.

At 28, Henry Ford became an engineer at Thomas Edison's company and started experimenting with gasoline engines (with Edison's approval). In 1896, at the age of 36, Ford started his first car company, the Detroit Automobile Company, which went bankrupt two years later.

Soon afterwards, he set up his second company, the Henry Ford Company. A year later, his partners hired Henry M. Leland to troubleshoot problems on the shop floor. Ford clashed almost immediately with Leland, and was forced out of the company bearing his name with only $900 cash. The Henry Ford Company was renamed Cadillac, and Ford went on to form his third car company, the "Ford & Malcomson" company and immediately got into trouble when he couldn't pay his suppliers, the Dodge brothers.

Ford's partner, Alexander Malcomson was able to convince the Dodge brothers to invest in the company instead and the company was reincorporated as the Ford Motor Company. And a good thing they did because third time was the charm. The Ford Motor Company made Henry Ford a very rich man.

Henry Ford's name became synonymous with automobiles for good reasons: he introduced the Model T, the first inexpensive car for the masses. He also popularized the use of assembly lines in mass productions, high workers' wages to attract talent and discourage employee turnover, franchise model car dealerships, and even the 5-day workweek.

One interesting note about Henry Ford: he didn't believe in accountants. On one occasion, his son Edsel contracted the building of a new office building with much needed space for the Accounting division. When Henry asked what the space was for, Edsel acknowledged that it was for the accounting department. The very next day, when the accountants showed up for work, they found their office had been stripped - no desks, chairs, or telephones; even the carpeting was gone - and that Henry had fired them all.

No. 8 Marcus Licinius Crassus

Peak wealth: $169.8 billion. Age at peak wealth: 62


Marcus Licinius Crassus (ca. 115 BC to 53 BC) is the earliest historical figure in this list. He was a Roman general and politician who defeated the slave revolt led by Spartacus.

If you think the rest of the businessmen on this list were ruthless - in reality they've got nothing on Crassus. The Roman general became wealthy when he bought the homes and belongings from the victims of Sulla's sacking of Rome (Crassus was one of Sulla's generals) for cheap. He then re-sold them at a princely profit. Crassus then expanded his wealth through the slave trade, silver mining, and real estate, especially by buying houses of those declared enemies of the state for next to nothing.

But it was Crassus' acquisition of burning houses that earned him his lasting notoriety. He maintained a troop of 500 skilled builders - and when a fire broke out in Rome (back then a frequent occurrence), he negotiated the sale of the burning properties and those nearby for cheap. Once he obtained the properties, he called upon his men to demolish the burning property and save the nearby buildings (that was the preferred technique of fighting fire during Roman times). He then rebuilt and leased back the property to the original owners! At one point, Crassus owned a large part of Rome and some wondered whether the fires might not have actually been his doing ...

Crassus was so greedy that when he died, his enemies had his head severed and molten gold poured into his mouth as a mark of his greed.

No. 9 Basil II

Peak wealth: $169.4 billion. Age at peak wealth: 67

Basil II (or Basil the Bulgarslayer) was a Byzantine emperor from the Macedonian dynasty who reigned from 976 to 1025. For historians, Basil II's reign represented the apex of the Middle Byzantine Empire - he expanded the territory of the empire by annexing Bulgaria, making it the largest and strongest it had ever been in nearly five centuries.

Basil had no heir, and within half a century of his death, the Byzantine Empire crumbled.

No. 10 Cornelius Vanderbilt

Peak wealth: $167.4 billion. Age at peak wealth: 82

Cornelius Vanderbilt is a true rags-to-riches story: he quit school at the age of 11 (famously saying "If I had learned education, I would not have had time to learn anything else") to work on ferries in New York. By 16, persuaded his mom to loan him $100 for a boat to start his own ferry business carrying freight and passengers between Staten Island and Manhattan. He repaid the loan with an additional $1000 one year later. It's from this business operating ships that he got his nickname "Commodore" that stuck for the rest of his life, even after he started getting into the railroad business.

Vanderbilt was ruthless in business. He once wrote a short (and now famous) letter to Charles Morgan and C.K. Garrison of the Morgan & Garrison company. The two men manipulated his steamship company's stock in his absence and took it over. The letter read "Gentlemen: you have undertaken to cheat me. I won't sue you, for the law is too slow. I'll ruin you. Yours truly, Cornelius Vanderbilt." True to his words, two years later Vanderbilt forced them out of business by running a competing business.

Despite of their wealth - or perhaps because of it, the Vanderbilt family wasn't a happy one. The Commodore was constantly thinking of his will, which he called "that paper." He wanted the money to remain intact, and thus it must be handed down to a single heir. Indeed, he disowned all of his sons other than William (see above), believing that only William was ruthless enough in business to be capable of maintaining his empire.

A note about the list: since it is based on the proportion of peak wealth to the national GDP in the country the individual lived in at the time they were alive, the list is dynamic: it changes as the GDP fluctuates, though it's rare to have a large shift in its composition.

World’s Most Expensive Uncut Diamond Bought by Hong Kong Jewelry Company

A 507-carat diamond was sold to a Hong Kong jewelry company suspected to have mainland Chinese connections this week. The price breaks the world record for the most expensive diamond ever sold on market for an uncut, rough diamond.

The so-called “Cullinan Heritage” stone was discovered in 2009 in perhaps the most famous diamond mine in the world, the Cullinan mine located in South Africa. The mine has been in operation for hundreds of years, producing two of the most famous diamonds in the Crown Jewels of London.

The mine was purchased by Petra Diamonds from De Beers for a cool $1 billion dollars in 2007. Considering that one 507-carat diamond fetched $35 million, it seems they are recouping their investment rather quickly. Pre-sale estimates put the value of the white diamond at $25 million but as usual a bidding war for rarities drove up the price.

Although this is the most expensive diamond on record, it is by far not the largest. The same Cullinan mine produced the record largest diamond in history, the 3,106-carat stone that was used to cut the famous Great Star of Africa. That famous diamond was presented to King Edward VII of England in 1906. It resides safely in the Tower of London as part of the Crown Jewels.

The Crown Jewels also contains a slightly larger 530-carat Lesser Star of Africa from that mine.
However the Cullinan Heritage diamond is the 19th largest ever recorded on market which makes this a rather special girl’s best friend. Now there is a gift that could win favors from a girlfriend.