Scotland’s 2024 rich list revealed – as billionaire mogul takes top slot

The top 10 wealthiest people in Scotland have been named in the annual Sunday Times Rich List.

In this year’s list, which reveals the fortunes of 350 of the biggest earners in the UK, fashion tycoon Anders Holch Povlsen was once again named as the richest person in Scotland.

The sole owner of the international retail clothing chain Bestseller and the largest shareholder in the UK fashion retailer ASOS owns £6.73 billion in wealth — down £1.77 billion from the previous year. He is Scotland’s largest landowner, with more than 220,000 acres over 13 estates.

This year has seen the biggest fall in the number of billionaires in the list’s 36-year history — from a peak of 177 in 2022 down to 165 this year. However, with a combined wealth of £795.361 billion, the 350 individuals and families on the list collectively possess more money than the annual GDP of Poland.

Despite a drop in billionaires, Harry Potter author JK Rowling saw her fortune increase by £70 million this year to a total of £945 million. Meanwhile, founder of Glasgow-based laser eye surgery business Optical Express David Moulsdale makes his rich list debut with estimated wealth of £374 million.

In second place on the rich list, with £5.619 billion, is Glenn Gordon and his family. The whisky tycoon saw an increase of £1.012 billion in wealth from 2023.

Following in third is oil tycoon Sir Ian Wood and his family, whose wealth increased by £91 million to a total of £1.911 billion. Rounding out the top five are Bahrana-Emirati businessman and Highland Spring owner Mahdi Al-Tajir and owners of Glasgow-based car dealership Arnold Clark Lady Philomena Clark and family, with fortunes of £1.641 billion and £1.581 billion according to The Sunday Times.

Also appearing on the list are Greenock businessmen Sandy and James Easdale and DC Thomson founders the Thomson family, at numbers six and seven respectively, with fortunes of £1.45 billion and £1.367 billion. Completing the top 10 are Sir Brian Souter and Dame Ann Gloag in ninth and Lord Laidlaw in 10th, whose wealth now totals £815 million and £741 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.

“We know many of our readers find such people — especially those from humbler backgrounds — very inspiring.”

The 10 wealthiest people in Scotland

1. Anders Holch Povlsen — £6.73 billion
2. Glenn Gordon and family — £5.619 billion
3. Sir Ian Wood and family — £1.911 billion
4. Mahdi Al-Tajir — £1.641 billion
5. Lady Philomena Clark and family — £1.581 billion
6. Sandy and James Easdale — £1.45 billion
7. The Thomson family — £1.367 billion
8. J. K. Rowling — £945 million
9. Sir Brian Souter and Dame Ann Gloag — £815 million
10. Lord Laidlaw — £741 million

More information about the Rich List can be found on The Sunday Times website.

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