Alice Walton has once again been named the richest woman in the world, topping the latest ranking of female billionaires released by Forbes. The American billionaire, an heir to the Walmart fortune, has an estimated net worth of about $134 billion, placing her firmly at the top of the global ranking of wealthy women for the second consecutive year.
Walton is the daughter of Walmart founder Sam Walton and built most of her wealth from her stake in the retail giant. She first became the world’s richest woman in 2024 after overtaking French businesswoman Françoise Bettencourt Meyers, the heir to the L’Oréal cosmetics empire.
According to the Forbes ranking, Bettencourt Meyers now holds the second position with an estimated net worth of around $100 billion, while Julia Koch, the widow of industrialist David Koch, ranks third with a fortune estimated at about $81.2 billion.
Chilean mining and beverage heiress Iris Fontbona moved up to fourth place with an estimated wealth of $52.6 billion, overtaking Jacqueline Mars, whose fortune from the Mars confectionery empire is estimated at about $49.1 billion.
The Forbes list also highlights that women remain a minority among the world’s ultra-wealthy. Out of 3,428 billionaires globally, 481 are women, representing about 14 percent of the total, a slight increase from the previous year.
Among the top female billionaires, only a small number built their fortunes themselves. Swiss shipping entrepreneur Rafaela Aponte-Diamant is the highest-ranking self-made woman on the list, while other well-known self-made billionaires include Diane Hendricks and several business leaders in technology and manufacturing.
