How did the richest people on the planet make their billions? New episodes include: Sir Paul McCartney, Roger Federer, MrBeast, Luana Lopes Lara, Beyoncé, Cristiano Ronaldo and Steven Spielberg. Make up your minds whether you think they are good, bad or just another billionaire. In each episode, BBC Business Editor Simon Jack and journalist and author Zing Tsjeng analyse the lives of the super-rich, and try to understand what motivates billionaires like Elon Musk, Kim Kardashian, Tyler Perry and Oprah Winfrey. New season: From singing superstar Beyoncé, to footballing legend Cristiano Ronaldo, Simon and Zing will rate their wealth, power, legacy and associated controversies, putting them to the test with a playful, totally unscientific scorecard. Then they hand the verdict over to you: are they good, bad, or simply billionaires? Get in touch by email and let us know what you think! The contact details are at the end of these show notes. Ever wondered how Taylor Swift went from country singer to money-spinner? How tennis ace Roger Federer turned sporting prowess into amazing business opportunities? Or how Mr Beast and Khaby Lame became some of the wealthiest people on the planet by posting on YouTube and TikTok? Trawl through the archives to find out how Selena Gomez went from a child Disney star to a mega-magnate of makeup, and how Martha Stewart, the “original lifestyle influencer”, became one of the most successful women in business. We explore the life of British inventor Sir James Dyson, and learn about some of the big names behind Snapchat, Minecraft, Marvel, ChatGPT, Google and Amazon, which shape the world we live in today. In a special season, we have also told the stories of the pioneers who helped build the United States of America: the world’s first billionaire John D Rockefeller, motor magnate Henry Ford, the aviator and filmmaker Howard Hughes, Walmart founder Sam Walton, and Hetty Green - once dubbed “The Witch of Wall Street”. It's not just how billionaires made their money; it's what they did with it next. So, what do you think? Make up your own mind. Are they good, bad, or just another billionaire? Let us know your thoughts, and we may include your comments and suggestions in a future episode. If you do not wish for your comments, first name or location to be read out, please say that in your email or message, or mark it confidential. Email [email protected] or drop us a text or WhatsApp to +1 (917) 686-1176. To find out more about the show and read our privacy notice, visit www.bbcworldservice.com/goodbadbillionaire
Prince Alwaleed bin Talal, often styled as the "Warren Buffett of Arabia," built a vast fortune through high-stakes, contrarian investments in global companies like Citicorp and Apple. While he claims to be a self-made entrepreneur, his path was significantly bolstered by his status as a Saudi royal. His career is mark...
Sheryl Sandberg’s trajectory from a high-achieving government official to one of Silicon Valley’s most influential executives highlights the unique path of a billionaire who built wealth as an employee rather than a founder. After mastering operational efficiency at the World Bank and the U.S. Treasury, she joined Goog...
Alan Sugar’s journey from a working-class childhood in post-war Hackney to a billionaire entrepreneur defines a classic rags-to-riches narrative. Starting with humble side hustles like selling car aerials, he founded Amstrad in 1968, eventually dominating the mass-market electronics sector by undercutting competitors t...
The Batista brothers, Wesley and Joesley, transformed their father’s small Brazilian butcher shop into JBS, the world’s largest meat processing conglomerate. Their rapid expansion relied heavily on state-backed financing from the Brazilian Development Bank (BNDES) and aggressive acquisitions across four continents. Thi...
Tao Huabi transformed from an impoverished survivor of China’s Great Famine into the billionaire founder of the globally recognized Lao Gan Ma chili sauce brand. Born in 1947 in rural Guizhou, she built her empire from a humble noodle stall, relying on a unique, crispy chili oil recipe that became a cultural phenomenon...
Paul McCartney’s path to billionaire status reflects a transition from a working-class musician exploited by early industry contracts to a shrewd businessman who mastered the value of intellectual property. Initial financial hurdles, including unfavorable deals with Northern Songs and the loss of his song catalog to AT...
Reed Hastings transformed global entertainment by shifting the industry from physical media to digital streaming. After a failed attempt to sell his struggling company to Blockbuster in 2000, Hastings leveraged a subscription-based DVD-by-mail model to build a massive subscriber base, eventually pivoting to streaming a...
Roger Federer’s evolution from a volatile, racket-smashing youth to a global billionaire icon centers on the strategic transformation of his personal brand. While his professional tennis career yielded $130 million in prize money, the vast majority of his $1.1 billion net worth stems from long-term, high-value endorsem...
Luana Lopes Lara, the world’s youngest self-made female billionaire, founded the financial technology company Kalshi to create a regulated prediction market where users trade on the outcomes of real-world events. By positioning these "event contracts" as financial derivatives rather than gambling, she secured federal a...
Jimmy Donaldson, known as MrBeast, represents a paradigm shift in the attention economy, leveraging an obsessive understanding of the YouTube algorithm to build a multi-billion dollar media empire. His strategy centers on high-stakes, viral stunts and rapid-fire editing, which he scales by reinvesting profits into mass...
Cristiano Ronaldo’s journey from poverty in Madeira to becoming the world’s first football billionaire illustrates the intersection of elite athletic performance and global commercial branding. Rising from a childhood defined by scarcity, his relentless work ethic and tactical adaptation transformed him into a dominant...
Steven Spielberg transformed from a self-described fearful child into the most commercially successful director in history, currently worth $7 billion. His financial success stems from pioneering "gross points" in Hollywood contracts, allowing him to collect revenue from total box office earnings rather than net profit...
Beyoncé’s ascent to billionaire status stems from a combination of relentless perfectionism, early entrepreneurial exposure, and a strategic shift toward total creative and financial control. By founding Parkwood Entertainment, she bypassed traditional label limitations, retaining ownership of her master recordings and...
The concentration of global wealth has reached a historic peak, with over 3,400 billionaires controlling more than $20 trillion. This financial landscape is shifting as a new billionaire is minted nearly every day, and the demographic is skewing younger, featuring viral stars like Mr Beast and Khaby Lame. Despite this ...
The Samsung dynasty faces a critical succession crisis between 1969 and 1976 as founder Lee Byung-chul navigates internal betrayal and leadership failures. Following the saccharin smuggling scandal, the eldest son, Lee Maeng-hee, proves temperamentally unfit for the chairmanship, while the middle son, Lee Chang-hee, fa...
Toto Wolff's journey from a challenging childhood to becoming a billionaire through motorsport is examined. The podcast traces his early life marked by financial struggles and his father's illness, which fueled his drive for control. It highlights his transition from a racing hopeful to a savvy investor in tech and rac...
The podcast explores how Ronnie Screwvala, an Indian entrepreneur, built his wealth, charting his journey from middle-class beginnings to becoming a billionaire. Screwvala's early ventures included selling tickets to movie premieres from his family's veranda and later establishing a successful toothbrush manufacturing ...
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