31 Oct 2023
But from Michael Dell and Michael Bloomberg to Larry Ellison and Larry Page, which are the most popular names among billionaires?
The team at Genting Casino has analysed the most recent Forbes Billionaires List to discover the names that are most likely to make you a billionaire and reveal the number of potential billionaires living among us in the UK.
What are the most common names among current billionaires?
1. John/Jon - 44 billionaires
There are currently a total of 44 billionaires named John/Jon, making it the richest name in the world. Most of these business moguls earn their fortunes in the finance and investments industry (7 billionaires), closely followed by the real estate and technology industries (6 billionaires in each).
The richest John/Jon in the world, according to Forbes, is John Franklyn Mars, who is worth a total of $38.3 billion, positioning him at number 31 on the Forbes Billionaires List. He, alongside his two siblings Jacqueline and Forrest Jr., became a billionaire after inheriting stakes in the American candy firm Mars following their father’s death in 1999.
Some other notable names include John Morris, who is the founder and CEO of the outdoor gear retailer Bass Pro Shops and John Collison, who is the co-founder and president of the payment software company Stripe.
2. David - 36 billionaires
The second richest name in the world is David, with 36 billionaires with this name currently featured on the Forbes Billionaires List. Again, most of these businessmen have made their fortune in the finance and investments industry (9 billionaires), followed by the technology industry (7 billionaires) and the real estate industry (5 billionaires).
The richest David in the world is David Thomson, who is worth $54.4 billion, ranking him 22nd on the Forbes Billionaires List. The Canadian businessman is the chairman of the media and publishing empire, Thomson Reuters Corporation, which was founded by his grandfather in 2008.
Some other notable names include David Cheriton, who made his fortune through an early investment in the online search engine Google, David Geffen, who is the founder of companies such as Asylum Records and DreamWorks, and David Baszucki, who is the co-founder and CEO of the social gaming platform Roblox.
3. Michael - 30 billionaires
The third richest name in the world is Michael, with 30 billionaires with this name currently featured on the Forbes Billionaires List. Most of these business moguls earn their fortunes in the finance and investments industry (11 billionaires), followed by the fashion and retail, and technology industries (5 billionaires each).
The richest Michael in the world is Michael Bloomberg, who is worth a huge $94.5 billion, positioning him at number 7 on the Forbes Billionaires List. Bloomberg made his start with an entry-level job at the investment bank Salomon Brothers on Wall Street in 1966 before being fired 15 years later. He then went on to co-found the financial information and media company Bloomberg LP in 1981 and he now owns approximately 88% of the business.
Some other notable names include Michael Dell, who is the chairman and CEO of the technology company Dell, Michael Ashley, who founded the UK’s largest sporting goods retailer Sports Direct, and Michael Rubin, who is the founder and CEO of the online sports merchandising retailer Fanatics.
4. Robert - 23 billionaires
The fourth richest name in the world is Robert - 23 billionaires with this name are currently featured on the Forbes Billionaires List. These businessmen have made their fortunes in industries such as construction, healthcare, technology, and food and beverages.
The richest Robert in the world is Robert Pera, who is worth $15.5 billion, ranking him 113th on the Forbes Billionaires List. He is the founder and CEO of the wireless equipment maker Ubiquiti Networks, which provides emerging markets with wireless broadband systems. Pera began his career in 2003 at Apple and founded Ubiquiti just 10 months into the job. He left Apple to focus on his own company full-time in 2005 and now owns 93% of the firm.
Some other notable names include Robert Johnson, whose great-grandfather Robert Wood Johnson founded the health products company Johnson & Johnson, Robert Mouawad, who inherited the high-end jewellery company Mouawad, and Robert Rich Jr., who leads the frozen food company Rich Products.
4. Thomas/Tomas - 23 billionaires
Also in fourth place is the name Thomas/Tomas. The most popular industry for these business moguls to be involved in is finance and investments (9 billionaires), followed by healthcare (3 billionaires).
The richest Thomas/Tomas in the world is currently Thomas Peterffy, who is worth $25.3 billion, positioning him at number 57 on the Forbes Billionaires List. He became known as a digital trading pioneer after founding the trading platform Interactive Brokers in 1993, where he remained as CEO until 2019.
Some other notable names include Thomas Tull, who is the former film financier and founder of the production company Legendary Entertainment, Thomas Schmidheiny, who earns the majority of his fortune from the cement and building materials giant Lafarge Holcim, and Thomas Pritzker, who serves as the executive chairman of the hotel giant Hyatt.
The most popular billionaire names in England and Wales
Taking into consideration the names of current billionaires, there are thought to have been over 4.7 million people born in England and Wales who could be set to follow in their footsteps. But which of the richest names is the most popular in these countries?
1. Jack/Jacques - 183,410 potential billionaires
Since 1996, there have been 183,410 babies born in England and Wales named Jack/Jacques, making it the most popular billionaire name. This is despite the fact that there are currently only 7 billionaires with this name across the world, earning their fortunes in industries such as food and beverages, technology and logistics.
The richest Jack/Jacques in the world is Jack Ma, who is worth $23.5 billion, ranking him 63rd on the Forbes Billionaires List. In 1999, he founded Alibaba Group, now one of the world’s largest e-commerce businesses. Ma stepped down as the company’s executive chairman in 2019.
Some other notable names include Jack Dorsey, who was the CEO of Twitter from 2015 to 2021, Jack Cowin, who has connections to the Australian franchises of Burger King (operating as Hungry Jack’s) and Dominos, and Jacques D’Amours, who co-founded the Canadian convenience store conglomerate Alimentation Couche-Tard.
2. Thomas/Tomas - 159,420 potential billionaires
The second most popular billionaire name in England and Wales is Thomas/Tomas, with 159,420 babies having been born with this name since 1996. As previously mentioned, Thomas/Tomas is also the fourth most popular name for current billionaires (joint with Robert), showing that anyone with this name has the highest chance of becoming a billionaire.
Some of the other current billionaires on the Forbes Billionaires list named Thomas/Tomas include Thomas Frist Jr., who is now worth $20.2 billion after founding Hospital Corp, and Thomas Kirk Kristiansen, who is the fourth-generation owner of LEGO and is now worth $6.7 billion.
3. James - 137,668 potential billionaires
In third place is the name James, with 137,668 babies having been called this in England and Wales since 1996. There are currently 18 billionaires across the world called James, earning their fortunes in industries such as media and entertainment, sports and manufacturing.
Currently, the richest James in the world is James Ratcliffe, who is worth $22.9 billion, ranking him 67th on the Forbes Billionaires List. The former chemical engineer is the founder, chairman and majority owner of the chemical powerhouse Ineos Group, which produces things such as synthetic oils and plastics.
Some other notable names include James Dyson, who founded the appliance company Dyson, James Jannard, who founded the sunglasses giant Oakley, and James Leprino, who owns the world’s largest mozzarella cheese maker.
4. Harry - 135,726 potential billionaires
The fourth most popular billionaire name in England and Wales is Harry, with 135,726 babies having been born with this name since 1996. This is despite the fact that there are currently only 2 billionaires in the world with this name: Harry Triguboff and Harry Stine. The popularity of the name in England and Wales could be due to the love for British icons, like Harry Styles.
The richest of the 2 Harrys is Harry Tribugoff, who is worth $13.1 billion, positioning him at number 137 on the Forbes Billionaires List. He has made his fortune in the real estate industry and has put up more than 75,000 apartments in Australia with his company Meriton.
Harry Stine, who is worth $7.4 billion, ranks 305th on the Forbes Billionaires List. He has earned his fortune in the food and beverages industry, licensing corn and soybean genetics to huge multinationals such as Monsanto and Syngenta.
5. Daniel - 118,043 potential billionaires
In fifth place is the name Daniel, with 118,043 babies having been called this in the UK since 1996. There are currently 16 billionaires across the world called Daniel, earning their fortunes in industries such as finance and investments, energy and technology.
The richest Daniel in the world is Daniel Gilbert, who is worth $18 billion, positioning him at number 92 on the Forbes Billionaires List. The American businessman co-founded Rocket Mortgage (formerly Quicken Loans) in 1985 at just 22 years old, and it is now the largest mortgage lender in the U.S. Gilbert also owns the NBA team Cleveland Cavaliers.
Some other notable names include Daniel Ek, the co-founder and CEO of the music streaming platform Spotify, Daniel Lubetzky, the founder and majority owner of the snack bar company Kind Healthy Snacks, and Daniel Abraham, who founded the dietary supplement food company Slim-Fast.
Methodology
We began by looking at the Forbes 2023 Billionaires List and noting down each name on the list, as well as how many billionaires there currently are with each name.
We focused on cultures where the family name follows the given name, meaning that any names such as Li and Wang were removed from the list. Any names which are pronounced the same but spelt differently were grouped together. Any initial names, such as G. Rajendran, were removed from the list as their full names aren’t known.
We then used the ‘Baby Names in England and Wales: from 1996’ data set from the Office for National Statistics. Using our list of current billionaires' names, we gathered how many babies had been born with each of those names in England and Wales since 1996. This then allowed us to see how many potential billionaires have been born in England and Wales throughout this time period.
Data correct as of 27/10/23.
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