Sunday Times Rich List 2024 sees fall for Sir James Dyson

Entrepreneur Sir James Dyson, who pledged to donate £6 million to a Malmesbury Primary School at the beginning of this year, was the second largest faller on the list.

The inventor and entrepreneur Sir James Dyson from Malmesbury is well known for founding the technology firm Dyson and inventing the cyclone bagless vacuum cleaner in the 1970s.

The billionaire has since moved into the beauty industry, with his line of hair tools such as the Dyson Airwrap proving particularly popular.

But this year, Sir James saw a drop to £20.8 billion from £23 billion.

James Dyson has shown huge financial commitments to Malmesbury (Image: PA)

Sir James isn’t the only billionaire to have suffered a loss this year, as the list recorded that the overall number of British billionaires has tumbled again, continuing a theme seen in 2023.

The number of billionaires reached a peak of 177 in 2022, before dropping to 171 and falling again to 165 this year.

Robert Watts, compiler of the rich list, explained: “This year’s Sunday Times Rich List suggests Britain’s billionaire boom has come to an end.

“Many of our home-grown entrepreneurs have seen their fortunes fall and some of the global super rich who came here are moving away.

“Thousands of British livelihoods rely on the super-rich to some extent.

“We’ll have to wait and see whether we have now reached peak billionaire, and what that means for our economy.”

It’s not been doom and gloom for all of Britain’s billionaires though, as the personal fortune of the Prime Minister Rishi Sunak and his wife Akshata Murty surged by more than £120 million over the past year.

Mr Sunak and Ms Murty’s wealth was £651 million in the latest list, soaring from £529 million in 2023.

The Rich List also showed that King Charles’ wealth has grown since he took the throne, rising to £610 million from £600 million.

Here are the 20 official richest people and families in the UK, according to the Sunday Times Rich List.

UK Rich List 2024

1. Gopi Hinduja and family – £37.2 billion

Britain’s richest family made its fortune from the Mumbai-based conglomerate Hinduja Group, which spans business sectors including banking and finance, media and entertainment, and energy.

2. Sir Leonard Blavatnik – £29.25 billion

The second-richest Briton is a Ukrainian-born business magnate and philanthropist who took Warner Music public in June 2020 after buying it in 2011.

3. David and Simon Reuben and family – £24.98 billion

The billionaire brothers made their money through property and technology with their private equity and investment business Reuben Brothers.

4. Sir Jim Ratcliffe – £23.52 billion

Manchester United part-owner Sir Jim Ratcliffe is the founder and chairman of global chemicals company Ineos, which was formed in 1998.

5. Sir James Dyson and family – £20.8 billion

Wiltshire inventor and entrepreneur Sir James Dyson is well known for founding technology firm Dyson and inventing the cyclone bagless vacuum cleaner in the 1970s.

6. Barnaby and Merlin Swire and family – £17.2 billion

The Swire family’s fortune stems from Swire Group, a global business spanning property, transport and industrials.

7. Idan Ofer – £14.96 billion

Israeli billionaire businessman Idan Ofer is one of two sons of shipping magnate Sammy Ofer. His father, who died in 2011, was once Israel’s richest man.

8. Lakshmi Mittal and family – £14.92 billion

Indian-born Mr Mittal is the chairman of ArcelorMittal, a multinational steel company.

He also owns mansions on Kensington Palace Gardens and is a co-owner of Queen’s Park Rangers football club.

9. Guy, George, Alannah and Galen Weston and family – £14.49 billion

The Weston family has a stake in Associated British Foods, which owns Primark and produces sugar, run by son George Weston.

10. John Fredriksen and family – £12.87 billion

John Fredriksen is a Norway-born shipping magnate who owns oil tankers and investments in fish farming, dry bulkers and deepwater drilling rig.