It's Forbes 400 Time Again

Buffett bumps Gates in redrawn rankings of world's wealthiest

(NEWSER) - The mortgage meltdown has certainly hit middle-class Americans hard but hasn't spared the uber-wealthy, Bloomberg reports. Las Vegas Sands CEO Sheldon Adelson’s net worth shed $4 billion between Aug. 29 and Oct. 1, for instance, while Warren Buffett overtook Bill Gates, whose net worth declined $1.5 billion, as the richest American. Other losers and their losses: More»

The Forbes rich list is bigger—and even wealthier—than ever

(NEWSER) - The rich are getting richer, younger, and more geographically diverse, Forbes reports, with the number of billionaires up a whopping 19 percent, and their total worth up 35 percent to $3.5 trillion. Not only have billionaires been galloping away from the pack, they've been doing it earlier, bringing the average age down two years to 60. More»

Most just ignored the question from Salon

(NEWSER) - Salon sent queries to every single billionaire on the Forbes 400 asking whether they would be willing to pay more taxes. The results: Eight said yes (including Buffett), one said no (Charles Koch), and a few offered qualified answers somewhere in between. The other 390 or so—including Oprah, Mayor Bloomberg, and Steven Spielberg—didn't answer. Samples from those who did respond: More»

His $59B tops Warren Buffett's $39B

(NEWSER) - Forbes is out with its annual ranking of the richest Americans, with some familiar names up top. Highlights from the magazine and MSNBC :

1. Bill Gates, $59 billion
2. Warren Buffett, $39 billion
3. Larry Ellison (Oracle), $33 billion
4. (tie) Charles Koch, $25 billion
5. (tie) David Koch, $25 billion

But the $290B we ponied up in 2010 is still below 2007 levels

(NEWSER) - Charitable giving increased last year as the economy improved, rising 3.8% to $290.89 billion, up from $280.3 billion in 2009. "There was a lot more optimism, all relative, in 2010," says an analyst. "People are still generous despite uncertainty, despite not having jobs, and despite confusion about what the future holds." But "if giving continues at this two or three percent (growth) level, it's going to take us a while to get back to where we were before." More»