These IL Billionaires Are Among World’s Richest: Forbes 2022 List

ILLINOIS — The billionaires of the world are worth a whopping $12.7 trillion— even though their fortunes fell by more than $400 billion as sanctions target Russian oligarchs following Vladimir Putin’s invasion of Ukraine and the pandemic continues to cause economic difficulties, according to the recently released Forbes World's Billionaires List.

In Illinois, hedge fund guru Ken Griffin topped the list with an estimated value of $28.2 billion, according to Forbes. Griffin was among several of the state's 21 billionaires who saw their personal wealth grow over the past year.

According to Forbes, more than 1,000 billionaires are richer than they were a year ago. And more than 200 people became billionaires over the past year as ordinary Americans grapple with record gas prices and rising food costs at the grocery store.

The number of billionaires on this year’s list slipped to 2,668 — 87 fewer than last year.
A total of 21 billionaires on this year’s list hail from Illinois. Joining Griffin among the wealthiest Illinoisans were insurance magnate Patrick Ryan, real estate guru Sam Zell and investment banker Joe Mansueto.

Other Illinois billionaires on the list include:

• Ken Griffin, Chicago, hedge funds $28.2 B
• Patrick Ryan, Winnetka, insurance, $7.8B
• Sam Zell, Chicago, Real Estate, 5.82 B
• Joe Mansueto, Chicago, Investment banking $5.72 B
• Neil Bluhm, Chicago, Real estate, $5.57 B
• Thomas Pritzker, Chicago, Hotels, 5.42 B
• Mark Walter, Chicago, Financier, $4.5 B
• Eric Lefkosky, Glencoe, Groupon co-founder, $3.39 B
• J.B. Pritzker, Chicago, Illinois Governor, Hotels, $3.5B
• Joseph Grendys, Chicago, Poultry, $3.1 B
• Penny Pritzker, Chicago, Hotels, $3.2 B
• Sheldon Lavin, Highland Park, Meats, $3 B
• Steven Sarowitz, Highland Park, Payroll, $2.97 B
• Jennifer Pritzker, Chicago, hotels, 2.03 B
• Jerry Reinsdorf, Chicago, sports, $1.8 B
• Byron Trott, Winnetka, Investments, $1.7 B
• Carl Thoma, Chicago, Investments, $1.6 B
• Matt Hulsizer, Chicago, Financial technology, $1.5 B
• Justin Ishbia, Chicago, Private equity, $1.52 B
• Michael Krasny, Highland Park, Retail, $1.29 B
• Leonid Radvinsky, Chicago, e-commerce, 1.17 B

To compile this year’s list, Forbes used a snapshot of its real-time billionaires rankings by analyzing stock prices and exchange rates for March 11.

The United States still leads the world with 735 billionaires worth a collective $4.7 trillion. This includes Tesla CEO Elon Musk, who tops the World’s Billionaires List for the first time.
Former Amazon CEO Jeff Bezos fell to the second spot on this year’s list. Bezos, who founded the e-commerce giant out of his garage in Seattle, Washington, stepped down as CEO in 2021 and is now executive chairman of the company.

Meanwhile, France’s Bernard Arnault of LVMH remains at No. 3, followed by Bill Gates of Microsoft at No. 4. Rounding out this year’s top five is Warren Buffett of Berkshire Hathaway.
U.S. and Illinois billionaires could surrender more wealth should Congress pass a “Billionaire Minimum Tax” proposed in President Joe Biden’s fiscal year 2023 budget proposal.

Under the proposal, households worth more than $100 million would pay at least 20 percent in taxes on both income and “unrealized gains,” or the increase in an unsold investment’s value. Many wealthy people hold onto these investments for decades, meaning they’re never taxed, the administration said.

However, the bill’s prospects seem grim after Democrat Sen. Joe Manchin spoke out against it.
“You can’t tax something that’s not earned. Earned income is what we’re based on,” Manchin told The Hill. “There’s other ways to do it. Everybody has to pay their fair share.”
See the full 2022 Forbes Billionaires List.