Wednesday, 6th March 2013
PRINCE AL WALEED BIN TALAL SLAMS FORBES FOR GETTING HIS FORTUNE WRONG – There are not that many people I know who have not heard of the famous ‘Forbes Rich List’; a list compiled and published each year on those who are the wealthiest people on the planet, with fortunes running into the billions.
There are of course those billionaires that jealously hide the amount of wealth they have and in all truth once you hit the billionaire status it is difficult to pin-point your exact wealth due to changes in stocks, shares and other investments.
However, for some the ability to gloat and flaunt their wealth to the world is simply irresistible and Prince Al Waleed bin Talal appears to be one of those individuals.
Prince Al Waleed bin Talal recently appeared in Forbes Rich List which estimated his wealth to be approximately £13 billion which placed him in 26th position of the world’s wealthiest people. The Prince was certainly not amused and publicly slammed Forbes for its mistrepresentation of his wealth; stating that he was worth well in excess of £20 billion and it is likely to be closer to £30 billion.
Prince Alwaleed, who is the newphew of Saudi King Abdullah, has listed his many financial interests including investments of the Savoy Hotel, Apple, Citigroup and New Corp, all of which he feels have been seriously undervalued by Forbes.
The Prince is no stranger when it comes of flaunting what he owns. It is reported that he owns over 200 high-end cars, including a fleet of Roll Royce cars, Ferrari’s and Lamborghini’s. Add to that his taste in travel and there’s the Private Hawker Jet or the Boeing 747 at his disposal. If the Prince decides to take to the seas then his accommodation is one of the world’s largest super yachts.
The truth is that Prince Alwaleed is in a position, financially, that he would never have to worry about cash and that for as long as he lives fueling any of his cars, planes or yachts is never going to be a concern; so why worry about the Forbes Rich List?
The Prince feels that Forbes, which is a powerful medium and can sway opinions, both negative and positive, often uses its Rich List bias or even discriminate Middle East businessmen. The Prince feels that by compiling and publishing incomplete or inaccurate information it can have an effect on how he or others are perceived in terms of being investment worthy, not just as an individual but also someone who represents a nation.
There is no doubt that most of us wouldn’t mind having a few more pounds, dollars or euros in the bank, the lottery statistics clearly show that, but if you had that amount of wealth would you really want to tell the world. The answer is yes for many people as their egos get the better of them and who like to show to others that they are in a position to live a lifestyle that many of us couldn’t even comprehend, let alone dream of.
