The King ascends, as billionaires tumble on The Sunday Times Rich List 2025. Aristocracy prevails over wealth.

Billionaires take a tumble as King Charles ascends in latest Sunday Times Rich List Image source, Getty Images Image caption, The King is now estimated to be worth £270m more than his late mother the Queen By Yang Tian and Imogen James BBC News Published 16 May 2025 The number of UK billionaires has fallen whilst King Charles' personal fortune has soared to match that of former prime minister Rishi Sunak and his wife Akshata Murty, according to the latest Sunday Times Rich List. The annual ranking of the UK's 350 wealthiest individuals unveiled the largest decrease in billionaires in the history of the publication. In the past year, the King's wealth has swelled by £30m to £640m, propelling him up 20 places to 238 alongside Sunak and Murty. Securing the top spot for the fourth consecutive year are the Hinduja family, creators of the Indian conglomerate Hinduja Group, whose fortune, despite a dip, is valued at over £35bn. Millions of UK residents have no savings, financial watchdog reports The tally of billionaires has dropped to 156 this year from 165 in 2024, marking the steepest decline in the 37-year history of the Sunday Times Rich List. "Our count of billionaires has decreased and the combined wealth of those featured in our research is on the decline," remarked Robert Watts, the compiler of the Rich List. The wealthiest individuals in the UK are as follows: 1. Gopi Hinduja and family (£35.3bn, down from £37.2bn) 2. David and Simon Reuben and family (£26.87bn) 3. Sir Leonard Blavatnik (£25.73bn) 4. Sir James Dyson and family (£20.8bn) 5. Idan Ofer (£20.12bn) Following the Hinduja family, the Reuben brothers trail closely behind at nearly £27bn, having amassed their wealth through ventures in property and technology. Sir Leonard Blavatnik occupies third place with a hefty net worth of almost £26bn. Witnessing the most considerable decline in fortune this year was Sir Jim Ratcliffe, a part-owner of Manchester United. His riches plummeted by £6.473bn - over a quarter of his wealth - over the past year, now totaling £17.046bn from £23.519bn, moving him from fourth to seventh position on the list. Notable figures featured on the list include Formula One champion Sir Lewis Hamilton, David and Victoria Beckham, and Sir Elton John. Among the under 40 richest Britons, Dua Lipa, aged 29, clinched the 34th spot with an estimated wealth of £115m. Harry Styles, 31, made the list at 22 with a fortune of £225m. Ed Sheeran, 34, ranked at number 13 with £370m. The King's burgeoning wealth now surpasses that of his late mother, Queen Elizabeth II. New data suggests that Charles is £270m wealthier than his mother, with much of his fortune deriving from the investment portfolio he inherited from her. The late Queen was valued at £370m in 2022 compared to Charles' current wealth of £640m. He avoided inheritance tax on his inheritance from her due to an exemption, which would have imposed 40% on assets exceeding a certain threshold. Income is also generated from his private estate, the Duchy of Lancaster, which spans over 18,000 hectares of land in regions like Lancashire and Yorkshire, as well as properties in central London. Valued at £654m, it yields approximately £20m in profits annually. Mr. Watts noted that fewer "super-rich individuals from around the world are choosing to reside in the UK." He highlighted the robust criticism towards Rachel Reeves's Treasury from affluent individuals during the publication process. The Labour government dismantled the non-dom tax status in April, which pertains to UK residents whose permanent abode for taxation is outside the UK. They now face the foreign income and gains regime, which offers tax relief on foreign income and gains for newcomers within the first four years of tax residency. This applies only if they were not a UK tax resident in any of the preceding 10 years. Last year, former Conservative chancellor Jeremy Hunt proposed abolishing the tax status before his successor, Rachel Reeves, hastened the process. The government anticipates that the measures will generate £12.7bn over the next five years. Global tariffs implemented by US President Donald Trump in April also had repercussions. The unveiling of the tariffs caused immediate stock market declines, leading to continued turbulence and increased prices for businesses in the US. The International Monetary Fund flagged global stock price drops in light of escalating trade tensions and cautioned against deteriorating trust between nations. Tags: billionaires, king charles, uk wealth, rich list, sunday times