Forbes announced the five richest women in the world in the annual list of the world's billionaires in 2026; At the top of the list are the heirs of Walmart and L'Oréal, and four of the top five women inherited most of their wealth. For the second year in a row, Alice Walton, the only daughter of Walmart founder Sam Walton, is the richest woman in the world. Forbes estimated his fortune at $134 billion in the 2026 annual list. The increase in the value of Walmart shares in one year added about 33 billion dollars to his fortune. Francois Betancourt Meyers and his family, heirs to L'Oreal, are in second place with a fortune of about 100 billion dollars. He is the grandson of Eugen Schuller, the founder of this cosmetics company, and his fortune increased by approximately 18.4 billion dollars in one year. In third place comes Julia Koch and her family with about 81.2 billion dollars. After the death of her husband, David Koch, she and her children inherited a large part of the Koch company. Chile's Iris Fontebona is in fourth place with a fortune of $52.6 billion, most of which comes from the Antofagasta mining company. Jacqueline Mars, the heiress of the food industry company Mars, is also in fifth place with about 49.1 billion dollars. However, an increase in the number of billionaires does not necessarily mean an increase in female entrepreneurs in the highest levels of wealth. Forbes says that about three quarters of the world's female billionaires inherited their wealth, and only 122 of them are self-made billionaires. Women still make up a small part of the world's billionaire population. Out of a total of 3,428 billionaires on the Forbes list in 2026, 481 are women; That means about 14 percent. In 2025, this figure stood at 406 women and is equal to 13.4% of the total list. In total, Forbes identified 3,428 billionaires with a combined net worth of $20.1 trillion in 2026; Both the number of billionaires and their total wealth is a new record in the history of this list.

Forbes announced the five richest women in the world in the annual list of the world's billionaires in 2026; At the top of the list are the heirs of Walmart and L'Oréal, and four of the top five women inherited most of their wealth. For the second year in a row, Alice Walton, the only daughter of Walmart founder Sam Walton, is the richest woman in the world. Forbes estimated his fortune at $134 billion in the 2026 annual list. The increase in the value of Walmart shares in one year added about 33 billion dollars to his fortune. Francois Betancourt Meyers and his family, heirs to L'Oreal, are in second place with a fortune of about 100 billion dollars. He is the grandson of Eugen Schuller, the founder of this cosmetics company, and his fortune increased by approximately 18.4 billion dollars in one year. In third place comes Julia Koch and her family with about 81.2 billion dollars. After the death of her husband, David Koch, she and her children inherited a large part of the Koch company. Chile's Iris Fontebona is in fourth place with a fortune of $52.6 billion, most of which comes from the Antofagasta mining company. Jacqueline Mars, the heiress of the food industry company Mars, is also in fifth place with about 49.1 billion dollars. However, an increase in the number of billionaires does not necessarily mean an increase in female entrepreneurs in the highest levels of wealth. Forbes says that about three quarters of the world's female billionaires inherited their wealth, and only 122 of them are self-made billionaires. Women still make up a small part of the world's billionaire population. Out of a total of 3,428 billionaires on the Forbes list in 2026, 481 are women; That means about 14 percent. In 2025, this figure stood at 406 women and is equal to 13.4% of the total list. In total, Forbes identified 3,428 billionaires with a combined net worth of $20.1 trillion in 2026; Both the number of billionaires and their total wealth is a new record in the history of this list.