Record-breaking number of Israelis featured on Forbes' 2024 billionaire's list

A record-breaking 42 Israelis were featured in Forbes' World Billionaires list for 2024, published earlier this week.

The list names Miriam Adelson, the widow of casino magnate Sheldon Adelson, as the world's wealthiest Israeli. 

The Jewish mega-philanthropist recently purchased the Dallas Mavericks of the NBA. She still holds shares in Las Vegas Sands, the casino business that has generated most of her family’s wealth and allowed her to donate prolifically to Jewish and pro-Israel causes.

According to Forbes, Adelson's net worth is around $32 billion. She was placed 53rd on the list, a significant distance from other Israelis on the list.

Next on the list were brothers Eyal and Idan Ofer, whose business operations revolve around shipping and sports, with Idan holding a 33% stake in Spanish soccer giants Atletico Madrid, as well as an 85% stake in Portuguese outfit FC Famalicao.

Eyal Ofer is ranked 84th in the world with a $24 billion net worth, with his brother coming in at 120th with a reported net worth of around $15.8 billion.

Other Israelis featured in the list include Russian-Israeli sanctioned oligarchs Roman Abramovich and Vyacheslav Moshe Kantor, recently retired Check Point founder Gil Shwed, businessman Teddy Sagi, Arnon Milchen, and Amnon Shashoua.

Why are so many Israelis included in Forbes' list?

The unprecedented rise in the number of Israelis featured on Forbes' list is mainly attributed to the continued growth of Israel's hi-tech industry, which has added five new Israeli billionaires to the list.

Out of the new five billionaires, four of them came from Cyber company Wiz: CEO Assaf Rapaport and co-founders Ami Luttwak, Roy Reznik, and Yinon Costica.

Many of the Israelis featured are also less well-known locally, appearing only because of their Israeli passports, even though most of their businesses are operated abroad.