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Forbes published its annual list of the 400 richest Americans earlier this week. While many people took a financial blow during the pandemic, wallets became thicker for this narrow circle of super-rich Americans. Their total fortune climbed to $ 4.5 trillion, an increase of 40 percent compared to 2020.
But only two blacks were on the list: Robert F. Smith and David Steward, Website with news about black technologies Afrotech noted. There were no black women in this circle of elites.
CONNECTED: Who is Robert F. Smith? Meet the black billionaire who paid off the debt on the student loan of Morehouse Grads
Ranked at 141, Smith is the richest black American, according to Forbes, who estimates his net worth at $ 6.7 billion. He founded the private investment company Vista Equity Partners in 2000. His company focuses exclusively on investing in software companies.
During his inaugural speech in 2019 at Morehouse College, the 58-year-old Smith entered the headlines when he promised to erase the student debt of the entire class.
Forbes set Steward’s net worth at $ 5.8 billion, putting him at number 182 on the list, along with several others in the rankings.
According to Forbes, the 70-year-old Steward has a history of rags to wealth. He grew up with seven siblings in the segregated South, with a father who connected the two ends through multiple jobs, including a porter and a garbage collector.
Despite his humble beginnings, he founded World Wide Technology, an IT provider. Today, his company has nearly $ 12 billion in sales and a customer base that includes Verizon and the federal government.
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Three well-known names topped this year’s list. Mark Zuckerberg on Facebook, Instagram and WhatsApp ranked third with $ 134 billion. of Tesla Elon Musk is in second place with $ 190 billion. And the richest American is Amazon Jeff Bezos with an incredible $ 201 billion.
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