Oxfam | Billionaire fortunes have grown at a rate three times faster than the previous five years since the election of Donald Trump in November 2024. While US billionaires have seen the sharpest growth in their fortunes, billionaires in the rest of the world have also seen double digit increases. There are now more than 3,000 billionaires for the first time, and their combined wealth is at a historic high—while one in four people globally faces hunger.

This extreme inequality however translates into more than the ownership of yachts and mansions. It translates directly into political power when a billionaire uses their wealth to buy a politician, to influence a government, to own media, or to out-lawyer any opposition to ensure they are above the law. Progress and fairness are undermined as billionaires are given control over all our futures, undermining political freedom and the rights of the rest of us.

Source: Oxfam.