Bussiness
Revealed: Scotland’s richest people
Anders Holch Povlsen is still the richest person in Scotland, according to this year’s edition of The Sunday Times Rich List.
The Danish retail billionaire held on to top spot, despite his £6.73bn net worth falling by an estimated £1.77bn during the year.
He is chief executive of clothing retailer Bestseller – boasting brands such as Jack & Jones, which was founded by his father Troels Holch Povlsen in 1975 – and also holds a large stake in online fashion retailer Asos.
The latest ranking revealed the largest fall in billionaires in its 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 £795.3bn – larger than the annual GDP of Poland. The minimum entry for the list of 350 this year is £350m.
Povlsen was closely followed by whisky tycoon Glenn Gordon and Family in second place, who saw his net worth increase by just over £1bn in the last year to £5.6bn.
Sir Ian Wood and family remain in third place, having seen their fortune increase by £91m to just over £1.9bn.
Highland Spring owner Mahdi Al-Tajir, whose value rose £4m to £1.6bn, moves up one place into fourth, into the spot occupied last year by former Harrods owner Mohamed Al Fayed, who died in August 2023.
Lady Philomena Clark and family, owners of car retailer Arnold Clark, saw their fortune decrease by £310m over the past year, putting their worth at just over £1.5bn and in fifth place on the list.
Harry Potter author JK Rowling saw her fortune rise by £70m to £945m, putting her eighth on the list.
The 2024 list also sees a debut for David Moulsdale, founder of the Glasgow-based laser eye surgery business Optical Express, whose wealth stands at an estimated £374m.
There is also a place in the annual wealth rankings for Flure Grossart, the daughter of the late Edinburgh financier Sir Angus Grossart.
Robert Watts, compiler of the list, commented: “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, so we’ll have to wait and see whether we have now reached peak billionaire, and what that means for our economy.“
The 10 wealthiest people in Scotland, 2024:
The list is based on identifiable wealth, including land, property, other assets such as art and racehorses, or significant shares in publicly quoted companies. It excludes bank accounts, to which the paper has no access.
Inclusion is based on a person’s place of birth, the location of one of their main businesses or a high profile asset in an area.
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