Top 10 Richest Women in the World 2013

Money!! Just one small word and carry a multitude of dreams and ambitions. Well, it is a fact that you need money to achieve your goals and also that you need money to make money. It makes the whole world seem so small that nothing really counts when it comes to acquiring wealth. It is a necessary evil. When you don’t have it you try to have it and when you do possess it you want more. The lust for wealth is like a never ending tree, one that grows very easily but never stops and goes on incessantly. This trend of having more never stops and then begins the rat race of being the wealthiest and the richest. Because if you are sitting on a large pile of money, you automatically start feeling important. And not just ‘socially important’, ‘the world revolves round you, kind of important. And talking about billionaires or multi billionaires they have what it takes to rule the world- Money! Some of them have inherited the vast fortunes while some have it made it large on their sheer dint but there is no denying the fact they control the world through their wealth.

Take a look at these top 10 richest ladies of the world:

10. Jacqueline Mars

The 10th richest woman this year is Jacqueline Mars who currently owns Mars Incorporated, an American candy company which was founded by her grandfather Frank C. Mars and her father Forrest Edward Mars. She is handling the company as a legacy of her family. This US citizen graduated from Bryn Mawr College with a degree in anthropology.  Being a member of the Mars family her share in the estate was around US $10 billion as of September 2010 making her 32^nd richest person in the world and 10^thrichest woman in the world as listed by Forbes magazine’s recent surveys.

9. Abigail Johnson

Abigail Johnson is an American businesswoman and president of Fidelity Investments Employer Service Company which is currently the largest mutual fund company in the USA. The company is led by her father Edward C. Johnson iii. Even though she is the daughter of Edward C. Johnson, her first job at the company was answering phone calls at the customer service department. She t5hen worked at Booz Allen and Hamilton as a consultant and then completed her MBA from Harvard Business School before joining her father’s company- Fidelity Investment and that too at a post of stock analyst. During these years she proved herself as an excellent fund observer and was then promoted to executive role in FMR. She later on became the president of Fidelity Investments. Her hard work led her company to hold $1.4 trillion shares in the market.

8. Savitri Jindal

Savitri Jindal is the widow of OP Jindal who was the founder of steel and power conglomerate. She is the richest billionaire woman in Asia with a net worth of US$12.2 billion. This non executive chairperson of OP Jindal Group is also the 80^th richest person in the world apart from featuring in Forbes list of wealthiest women from around the world. She gained controlled of the reins of OP Jindal Group after her husband died in a plane crash in 2005. She is also a member of Haryana Vidhan Sabha i.e. Legislative Assembly. Until 2010, she served as Minister of Power in Haryana government. She is also ranked as the 4^thrichest person in India and among other billionaire mothers, she has the maximum number of children- nine!

7. Anne Cox Chambers

This owner of Cox Enterprises is listed as the 7^th richest woman in the world by Forbes magazine. She can easily be called as the oldest member of the woman billionaires club. She currently holds 98% shares of Cox Enterprises which makes majority of her $13 billion fortune. Fox Enterprise is a privately held media empire including newspapers, radio, TV and other similar businesses. Her father James M. Cox founded the empire and who was also a candidate for president election of 1920. She has been married twice and has three children one of which (James Cox) is an actor, dancer and choreographer in Hollywood. She graduated from Finch college and has also served as board director in Coca-Cola as well as a national ambassador to Brazil.

6. Birgit Rausing

Some say that Birgit Rousing did not seek money; instead she chose it without asking for anybody’s permission. This Swedish art historian and philanthropist is the daughter of a physician father and a housewife mother. Her fortune comes from her company which belonged to her late husband Gad Rousing. Tetra Pack was founded y her father in law and it brought about a revolution in packaging industry primarily in juices and milk. But after her husband’s death this company was inherited by Brigit and her three sons becoming the third richest in Sweden according to Forbes magazine. She and her family have an estimated wealth of US$13 billion as in 2010.

5. Susanne Klatten

This German national is the richest woman in Germany being born in the richest family of the country. Her parents are Herbert Quandt and Johanna Quandt. She is an heiress to one of the wealthiest and most dominant family in Germany which makes her 5^th richest woman in the world. Her net worth of $14.6 billion comes from her shares in Altana and BMW. After her father’s death she inherited 50.1% shares of Altana which is a pharmaceuticals and chemicals manufacturer. She has a degree in business finance and she has worked for some top notched names such as Young and Rubicam in Frankfurt which is an advertising agency and later for Dresdner Bank and McKinsey after completing her MBA from IMD and a course in marketing and management from University of Buckingham. To hide her real identity she worked under the alias of “Susanne Kant”.

4. Iris Fontbona

Iris Fontbona and her family control the business empire of billionaire Andronico Luksic who died of cancer in 2005. His wife Iris Fontbona is now the 4^th richest woman in the world with a net worth of $17.8 billion.  Her large estate comes from the copper giant Antofagasta which makes her family the wealthiest in Chile. Theirs is the largest copper mines. They also own stakes in Quinensco which is a consumer package and beverage maker. They also have interest in Banco de Chile as well as in energy, transportation and port services to expand their existing business. According to Forbes, she publicly donated $3 million to help her country people with disabilities in December 2011.

3. Alice Walton

This American is an heiress to Wal-Mart Stores, Inc which makes her the 3^rd richest woman in the world. Her company’s net worth of US $26.3 billion makes her the second richest woman in the USA. She is the daughter of Helen Walton and Sam Walton, who founder Wal-Mart, Inc. she is graduate of Trinity University with a B.A. in economics and finance. She began her career with First Commerce Corporation as working as an equity analyst and money manager. She later served as a head of all investment related activities in Arvest Bank Group. She is also the chairman of Crystal Brides Museum of American Art, which was also started by her family.

2. Christy Walton

Christy Walton is the widow of John T. Walton who is the son of Sam Walton- Founder of Wal-Mart, Inc. after her husband’s death; she became the sole heiress of $15.7 billion which reached new highs when the stock market of Wal-Mart jumped up in 2012. She is the richest woman in the USA and second richest in the world falling behind Liliane Bettencourt (heiress of L’Oreal). She inherited billions when her husband died in a plane crash in 2005. Her wealth exceeds than other share holders of Wal-Mart family because her husband invested in First Solar. She also supports her family’s charitable foundation which provides benefits of education and colleges and goes by the name of “The Walton Family Charitable Support Foundation”.

1. Liliane Bettencourt

She is the woman who gave new definition to cosmetics after she inherited L’Oreal which was founded by her father Eugene Schueller. It is one of the biggest and largest beauty and cosmetic company in the world. Her company’s net worth of $ 30 billion makes her the richest woman in the world. She and her family currently own above 30% shares of L’Oreal which has only been increasing thanks to boost in French market for cosmetics. The elderly widow also has fought legal battles against her family due to guardianship of her money.