Waitt falls on Forbes billionaire list
By Dave Dreeszen Journal business editor | Posted: Friday, March 07, 2008
SIOUX CITY -- Gateway co-founder Ted Waitt tumbled more than 200 spots on Forbes' latest rankings of the world's wealthiest billionaires.
SIOUX CITY -- Gateway co-founder Ted Waitt tumbled more than 200 spots on Forbes' latest rankings of the world's wealthiest billionaires.
The Sioux City native is tied for No. 785 on the magazine's 2008 list with an estimated fortune of $1.5 billion. That's down from 583rd and a net worth of $1.7 billion the previous year, according to the magazine.
His older brother, Norm Waitt Jr. tied for 1,014th place with an estimated net worth of $1.1 billion on this year's list. He did not appear in the 2007 rankings.
Famed Omaha investor Warren Buffett, chairman of Berkshire Hathaway Inc. surpassed his friend, Microsoft founder Bill Gates, for the top spot on Forbes' 2008 list of the globe's richest of the rich. Buffett's net worth jumped $10 billion to $62 billion in the past year, on the strength of the growth of Berkshire stock. The company's holdings include MidAmerican Energy Co.
Gates, whose worth rose $2 billion to $58 billion, fell to third on the list after a 13-year run at the top. Carlos Slim Hel of Mexico, a telecom entrepreneur, is second on the list with a net worth of $60 billion. In just two years, Forbes said his fortune has doubled.
Forbes notes, for the first time, the number of billionaires has exceeded four figures, reaching 1,125. The total net worth of the group is $4.4 trillion, up $900 billion from last year. Americans account for 42 percent of the world's billionaires and 37 percent of the total wealth.
Both Waitt brothers made their fortune with Gateway, the computer maker that began on their family farm in Sioux City in 1985.
Ted Waitt, 45, sold his remaining stock in Gateway last year as part of the $710 million acquistion of the company by Taiwan-based Acer Inc.
Waitt's private investment firm, Avalon Capital Group, based in La Jolla, Calif., with an office in North Sioux City, is involved with a wide range of ventures, Through Avalon's film division, Waitt last month said he would finance a film based on Amelia Earhart. Oscar winner Hilary Swank will play the famed aviator in the biopic, which reportedly is scheduled to begin production in April.
Norm Waitt, Jr., 53, is the financier behind Gold Circle Films, which has made such films as "My Big Fat Greek Wedding.''
To see the entire Forbes list, which was released today, go to: www.forbes.com/billionaires.
SIOUX CITY -- Gateway co-founder Ted Waitt tumbled more than 200 spots on Forbes' latest rankings of the world's wealthiest billionaires.
The Sioux City native is tied for No. 785 on the magazine's 2008 list with an estimated fortune of $1.5 billion. That's down from 583rd and a net worth of $1.7 billion the previous year, according to the magazine.
His older brother, Norm Waitt Jr. tied for 1,014th place with an estimated net worth of $1.1 billion on this year's list. He did not appear in the 2007 rankings.
Famed Omaha investor Warren Buffett, chairman of Berkshire Hathaway Inc. surpassed his friend, Microsoft founder Bill Gates, for the top spot on Forbes' 2008 list of the globe's richest of the rich. Buffett's net worth jumped $10 billion to $62 billion in the past year, on the strength of the growth of Berkshire stock. The company's holdings include MidAmerican Energy Co.
Gates, whose worth rose $2 billion to $58 billion, fell to third on the list after a 13-year run at the top. Carlos Slim Hel of Mexico, a telecom entrepreneur, is second on the list with a net worth of $60 billion. In just two years, Forbes said his fortune has doubled.
Forbes notes, for the first time, the number of billionaires has exceeded four figures, reaching 1,125. The total net worth of the group is $4.4 trillion, up $900 billion from last year. Americans account for 42 percent of the world's billionaires and 37 percent of the total wealth.
Both Waitt brothers made their fortune with Gateway, the computer maker that began on their family farm in Sioux City in 1985.
Ted Waitt, 45, sold his remaining stock in Gateway last year as part of the $710 million acquistion of the company by Taiwan-based Acer Inc.
Waitt's private investment firm, Avalon Capital Group, based in La Jolla, Calif., with an office in North Sioux City, is involved with a wide range of ventures, Through Avalon's film division, Waitt last month said he would finance a film based on Amelia Earhart. Oscar winner Hilary Swank will play the famed aviator in the biopic, which reportedly is scheduled to begin production in April.
Norm Waitt, Jr., 53, is the financier behind Gold Circle Films, which has made such films as "My Big Fat Greek Wedding.''
To see the entire Forbes list, which was released today, go to: www.forbes.com/billionaires.
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