Main Line Entrepreneur Is Richest Man In PA: Forbes

HAVERFORD, PA — A Main Line entrepreneur is the richest person in Pennsylvania, according to a new ranking released Wednesday by Forbes.

Jeff Yass, a resident of Haverford with a net worth of $59 billion, earned his riches as a co-founder of Susquehanna International Group — one of Wall Street's largest and most successful trading firms, according to Forbes.

According to his bio, Yass went to SUNY Binghamton and became a pro gambler. From there, he began trading on the Philadelphia Stock Exchange in 1981 and in 1987, he cofounded Susquehanna with a handful of partners.

The company now employs more than 3,000 people with the goal of recruiting and training traders using poker tournaments to sharpen decision-making skills.

Elon Musk, whose real-time worth is $386.5 billion, is the richest person in Texas, the United States and the world. Musk co-founded seven companies, including electric car maker Tesla, rocket producer SpaceX and artificial intelligence startup xAI.

All but three states — Alaska, Delaware and West Virginia — have at least one person worth 10 figures on the Forbes Richest Person in Every State 2025 inventory. Including ties, the list includes 54 entrepreneurs, investors and heirs who are worth a record $2 trillion combined, up $400 billion since the 2024 list.

Five states have a new top billionaire, the Forbes analysis shows. They include Missouri, where IT mogul David Steward (estimated net worth $11.4 billion) of St. Louis-based World Wide Technology surpassed John Morris ($9.6 billion) of Springfield-based Bass Pro Shops.

A new Walton tops the list in neighboring Arkansas. Bentonville-based Walmart heir Rob Walton ($113 billion) overtook his brother Jim Walton ($112 billion), while the world’s richest woman, their sister Alice Walton ($104 billion), remains a distant second in Texas, where Musk moved in 2020.

Newcomers also take the top spots in Washington, where former Microsoft CEO Steve Ballmer ($118 billion) beat out his former boss Bill Gates ($108 billion); New Jersey, where hedge fund tycoon John Overdeck ($7.4 billion) reclaimed the lead from cable TV mogul and Italian immigrant Rocco Commisso ($5.8 billion); and in Wisconsin, where Diane Hendricks ($21.9 billion), a Republican megadonor and cofounder of Beloit-based roofing giant ABC Supply cofounder, overtook John Menard Jr. ($21.5 billion), founder of Eau Claire-based home improvement chain Menard’s.

Forbes said nearly two-thirds of America’s 868 billionaires live in just four states: California (194), New York (137), Florida (116) and Texas (81), where competition is fierce for the title of the richest of the rich.