Bill Gates reclaims top spot of being the world's richest man

Flickr CC By: Steve Jurvetson

Bill Gates reclaims top spot of being the world's richest man
(Image credit: Flickr CC By: Steve Jurvetson)

If you had Bill Gates in your office pool as being the world's richest person, well congratulations! The Microsoft co-founder placed first in Forbes' annual list of billionaires after a four-year hiatus, grabbing the spot back from Mexican business mogul Carlos Slim Helu. A mere $4 billion separated the duo, with Gates' net worth estimated at $76 billion to Helu's $72 billion.

The list is full of interesting nuggets of data. For example, the average net worth of the 1,645 people on this year's list is $4.7 billion. That's up from an average of $4.2 billion the 1,426 billionaires made last year. More than 65 percent of those on the list are self-made billionaires, while the rest inherited at least a portion of their fortune.

Facebook's Mark Zuckerberg saw his fortune double to $28.5 billion, notching him 21st place on the list. Sheryl Sandberg, the social network's chief operating officer, also made the list for the first time. Forbes released a full breakdown here. --Jordan Valinsky

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