When it comes to the finances of the British royal family, things can get complicated because they keep so many details private. However, there is no doubt that the British royal family is insanely wealthy, and there is a common belief that Queen Elizabeth is the richest person in the United Kingdom. It’s true that the Queen is by far the wealthiest person in her family, but she’s not the richest aristocrat in the UK. In fact, she’s not even close.
Queen Elizabeth is number 17 on the list
When the Sunday Times of Londonreleased their annual “Rich List” in 2018 of the 1,000 richest people in theUK, Queen Elizabeth came in at number 17 with a net worth of $485 million. The93-year-old’s main source of income is her Crown Estate property portfolio.
The publication calculated the Queen’s wealth based on land, property, and other quantifiable assets. They didn’t include things like bank accounts because there is no public access to that information. While $485 million is a hefty sum, her totals paled in comparison to the wealthiest man in the UK – Hugh Grosvenor, the Duke of Westminster.
At 28 years old, Grosvenor is notonly the richest man in the United Kingdom with a net worth of nearly $13billion, but he is also the youngest rich person in the Commonwealth.
Where does Queen Elizabeth’s money come from?
The Queen’s wealth comes from bothpublic and private income streams. She generates income from a diverseportfolio of assets that includes everything from property to racehorses. Shealso receives a “sovereign grant” from the UK Parliament to help with officialexpenditures.
The grant comes from a percentage ofthe profits of the Crown Estate, which is worth an estimated $16.7 billion.Recently, her percentage from the estate increased from 15 percent to 25percent to help cover renovations at Buckingham Palace.
Queen Elizabeth also receives asalary from the Duchy of Lancaster and privately owns Balmoral Castle andSandringham House.
The entire British royal family is worth an estimated $88 billion, says Brand Finance, a business consultancy firm. But that staggering total doesn’t mean they are the wealthiest royals on Earth. That title belongs to the Saudi royal family.
The House of Saud
With more than 15,000 familymembers, Saudi Arabia’s House of Saud is worth an estimated $1.4 trillionthanks to the country’s oil reserves. While only about 2,000 members of thefamily hold the wealth, their net worth still beats the Mountbatten-Windsors sixteentimes over.
Just like the Brits, the Saudi royalfamily keeps their money details private, but it is clear they live a lavishlifestyle filled with private jets, yachts, helicopters, and breathtakingproperties. According to CNBC, theSaudi palace is decorated in gold furniture – it even features a gold-platedKleenex dispenser.
The House of Saud also donatesmillions to charity and invests heavily in the Saudi people. In 2015, Saudi Arabian monarch King Salmanbin Abdulaziz Al Saud – who is personally worth $17 billion – gifted Saudicitizens with $32 billion, and the family also gave the World Bank millions tohelp female entrepreneurs.
The King’s son, Crown PrinceMohammed bin Salman, has recently led a war on corruption and forced some ofthe country’s richest citizens to turn their money over to the state – evensome members of his own family.
The Crown Prince also recentlyenjoyed a shopping spree that included a $450 million Da Vinci painting, a $500million yacht, and a $300 million French chateau.
“I’m a rich person and not a poor person. I’m not Gandhi or[Nelson] Mandela,” he told CBS News.“I’m a member of the ruling family that existed for hundreds of years beforethe founding of Saudi Arabia. I spend at least 51 percent on people and 49 onmyself.”
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