The new Sunday Times Rich List has been released today (Friday, May 17) revealing the wealthiest people from the Midlands region.
Many of the UK’s richest residents have their origins in Birmingham and the West Midlands. Some are continuing a legacy while others are new entrepreneurs - who made it big.
Here a look at the wealthiest 1% of the Midlands in 2024, according to the new Sunday Times Rich List.
This year’s UK listing shows that the richest people from our region come from varied backgrounds. The new 76-page special edition of The Sunday Times Magazine reveals the largest fall in the billionaire count in the guide’s 36-year history, from a peak of 177 in 2022 to 165 this year.
This year’s list of 350 individuals and families together hold combined wealth of £795.361 billion, a sum larger than the annual GDP of Poland. British-Indian businessman Gopi Hinduja and his family top the list, with their wealth of £37.2bn.
Sir Elton John, Lord Lloyd-Webber and David and Victoria Beckham all appear in the annual survey. The minimum entry for the list of 350 this year is £350 million.
Robert Watts, compiler of the Sunday Times Rich List, said: “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.
“These may be harder times to create wealth, but The Sunday Times Rich List continues to unearth entrepreneurs building fortunes in diverse and often surprising ways.
“This year’s new entries include people who have made money from artificial intelligence and virtual worlds as well as plumbing supplies and teaching aides.”
Let’s take a look at the richest people from the Midlands.
1. Lord Bamford and family (overall rank: 19)
The wealth of Lord Bamford and family in 2024 is £7.65bn, making them the richest family and people in the Midlands. They gained £1.75bn in the last year. His wealth increased by £1.75bn in the last year. They are the owners of West Midlands origin company JCB. | Getty Images (Photo by Luke Walker/Getty Images for Starlight Children’s Foundation)
2. Denise, John and Peter Coates and family (overall rank 20)
Denise Coates is the richest woman in the UK. The founder of gambling company Bet365 and her family are worth £7.467bn in 2024, a fall of £1.328bnin the last year. | Getty Images
3. Mike Ashley (overall rank: 49)
The Walsall-born owner of Frasers Group comes third on the list. His wealth in 2024 is £3.799bn. This is a drop of £41 million from the year before | Getty Photo: Carl Court
4. John Bloor (overall rank: 54)
Derbyshire-born housebuilder and former plasterer, John Bloor, who owns the Triumph Motorcycles brand has a fortune of £3.396bn, down £92m from the year prior | AFP via Getty Images