Top 10 Richest People in Middle East


Rank 1

HRH Prince Alwaleed



Age     : 57

Wealth : $21.30 bn

Nature of Business: Banking & Finance

From    :  Saudi Arabia

World Richest Rank: 26

Brief Introduction: 

  • Prince Al-Waleed bin Talal  is a member of the Saudi royal family. He is the nephew of King Abdullah of Saudi Arabia
  • Al-Waleed completes his Master's of Social Science with honors from Syracuse University in 1985.
  • He began his business career in 1979 as an investor.
  • He is founder, CEO and 95%-owner of Kingdom Holding Company
  • Will make new investments in Nigeria, through his company Kingdom Zephyr Africa Management, which already has interests in hotels, banking, cement production, oil and charity projects.


Rank 2

Mohamed Al Jaber


Age     : 53

Wealth :  $12.75bn

Nature of Business: Real Estate

From    :  Saudi Arabia

World Richest Rank: 33

Brief Introduction: 

  • Mohamed Bin Issa Al Jaber is the founder, Chairman & CEO of MBI International.
  • Over twenty five years, MBI Al Jaber's businesses have expanded into:
* JJW Hotels & Resorts
* AJWA Group for Food Industries
* Jadawel International
* Continentoil
  • He constantly and tirelessly expends his commitment to education reform and the promotion of peace and tolerance. 
Rank 3

Lubna Suliman Olayan





Age     : 57

Wealth :  $11.90bn

Nature of Business: Banking & Finance

From    :  Saudi Arabia

Brief Introduction: 

  • Lubna Suliman Olayan considered to be one of the most influential businesswomen in the world
  • Ms. Lubna S. Olayan is the chief executive officer of the Olayan Financing Company (OFC), the holding entity for the Olayan Group's operations in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia and the Middle East;
  • She is married to an international attorney, John Xefos  and they have three daughters all living in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia.
  • Expansive Olayan Group includes more than 40 companies, and is a leading investor in the region's Coca-Cola bottling company and Burger King franchises. Passions: Just one, business.
  • Olayan recently acquired 30 million shares in Dutch bank ABN AMRO
Rank 4

Issam Alzahid


Wealth :  $10.70bn

Nature of Business: Construction & Industry

From    :  Saudi Arabia

World Richest Rank:

Brief Introduction: 

  • Issam Alzahid is the chairman of the Alzahid Group of Companies which was started in 1951 under the banner Alzahid Construction.
  • By 1958 the company was in full swing, building everything from bridges to tunnels and flyovers.
  • Has a significant interest in mining, logistics, oil and gas, manufacturing, information technology, foodstuffs, retail and many other sectors.
Rank 5

Mohammed Al Amoudi




Age     : 66

Wealth :  $10.40bn

Nature of Business: Real Estate

From    :  Saudi Arabia

World Richest Rank: 63

Brief Introduction: 

  • Al Amoudi starts his business in construction and real estate before branching out to buy oil refineries in Sweden and Morocco.
  • Al Amoudi owns a broad portfolio of businesses not only in oil but also in mining, agriculture, hotels, hospitals, finance, operations and maintenance.
  • He has recently pledged US$275 million alongside other Saudi and South Korean investors through MIDROC to finance a factory to build Saudi Arabia's first car, to be called Gazal-1.
  • According to Forbes, as of March 2012[update] Al Amoudi is the richest black person in the world, having surpassed Aliko Dangote.
 Rank 6

Nasser Al-Kharafi & family



Wealth : $8.74 bn

Nature of Business: Retail

From    :  Kuwait

Brief Introduction: 

  • Nasser Kharafi passed away last year leaving the reins of the Kharafi Group in the hands of his sons.
  • Runs $4.3 billion (sales) M.A. Kharafi & Sons in Kuwait, which has benefited from that nation's robust economy.
  • MA Kharafi and Sons has the exclusive franchise rights in the Middle East for fast food brands including KFC, Wimpy, TGI Friday’s, Cadbury’s, Pizza Hut and Saint Cinnamon.
  • MA Kharafi Group now operates in more than 25 countries around the world.
  • It also the largest individual stakeholder of popular doughnut company Krispy Kreme.
Rank 7

Bukhamseen Family

Wealth : $7.25 bn

Nature of Business: Banking & Finance

From    :  Kuwait

Last year's rank: 25

Brief Introduction: 

  • Bukhamseen Group was launched half a century ago as the vision of one man, Jawad Ahmed Bukhamseen.
  • He founded the Jawad Bukhamseen Commercial Corporation in 1957
  • The company has a primary interest in financial investment and banking.
  • It also concerns in hospitality, travel and tourism, industrial production, media and communication work, consultancy services in urban planning, civil engineering, and major development projects in Kuwait.
Rank 8

Bin Ladin family

Wealth : $7.20 bn

Nature of Business: Construction & Industry

From    :  Saudi Arabia

Last year's rank: 5

Brief Introduction: 

  • Bin Ladin’s family which is now Saudi Arabia’s most successful construction empire.
  • Mohammed Bin Ladin, the family also built several palaces in Riyadh and Jeddah for the royal family and carried out restoration work following an arson attack on Jerusalem’s Al Aqsa Mosque in 1969.
  • Salem, Mohammed’s eldest son, ran the empire left behind by his father upon his death in 1968 until he died when his private plane crashed in Texas in 1988
  • Mohammed left 54 sons and daughters from several marriages.
  • Thirteen of his sons sit on the board of the family’s firm.
 Rank 9

Bugshan family

Wealth : $7.00 bn

Nature of Business: Construction & Industry

From    :  Saudi Arabia

Last year's rank: 8

Brief Introduction: 

  • Based in Jeddah, they are associated with a plethora of business sectors, including automobiles, luxury cosmetics and watches, real estate and electronics.
  • Ahmed Salem Bugshan Group (referred to as ASB) started as a steel manufacturer.
  • In Saudi Arabia, ASB companies hold sole distribution rights for Bridgestone tyres, Nivea, and Christian Dior perfumes, to name a few.
Rank 10

Said Khoury




Wealth : $6.50 bn


Nature of Business: Construction & Industry

From    :  Saudi Arabia

Last year's rank: 7

Brief Introduction: 

  • Said Khoury is renowned as much for his business acumen as his passionate support of the Palestinain cause.
  • Born in Safad, Palestine, Khoury moved to Lebanon in 1948 after the Arab-Israeli war and got his first job helping to build Tripoli Airport and now based in Athens
  • With cousin Hasib Sabbagh, in 1952 he founded Consolidated Contractors International Company (CCC), one of the first Arab construction companies.
  • CCC has built landmark projects in everything from Iraq’s Abu Ghraib prison to the Ronald Reagan National Airport in Washington, DC
  • CCC securing a contract related to oil pipe storage facilities for the Iraq Petroleum Company entailed working with the Bechtel Group, the world’s largest construction company.
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