David Shaw
Source of wealth: Hedge funds
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The scale of their wealth
Health
The price of life
Let's compare David Shaw's fortune with the healthcare spending of a massive country
David Shaw could fund the entire healthcare system of DR Congo, with a population of over 105,800,000 people, for approximately 4.0 years.
But even if we compare their fortune with that of a rich country
On the other end, David Shaw could cover the healthcare spending of Luxembourg, considered the most heavily funded healthcare system in the world, for 1.8 years.
Education
Buying the future
Let's also compare their fortune with education spending, first with a poor country
David Shaw could cover the total cost of Nigeria's education system, the most populous country in Africa with over 243,000,000 inhabitants, for 2.6 years.
And yes, we can also compare it with a rich country
But they couldn't just cover the cost of a poor country; Luxembourg is considered the country with the highest per capita investment in education in the world, and David Shaw could pay for it entirely for 3.5 years.
Research
The monopoly on progress
Coming full circle, we think it's also interesting to add another gigantic country
David Shaw could fully fund the state research budget of Pakistan, the fifth most populous country in the world with over 260,000,000 inhabitants, for 14.9 years.
And of course, the country that invests the most per capita worldwide
But even if we compare the total wealth of David Shaw with Israel, the country that invests the most per capita in research in the world, they could cover the total cost of the system for 0.3 years.
Gold
Everyday luxuries
David Shaw's fortune is equivalent to 61 tons of gold. It's hard to process, since we don't usually keep a handful of gold bars in our piggy banks.
A standard gold ring usually weighs between 4 and 7 grams. Let's say this one weighs 5 grams. It's usually 18 karats.
Based on today's gold price (excluding the jeweler's commission, shipping, or anything else), that ring would be worth $546.86.
David Shaw could buy 16,134,027 gold rings. That's a lot of fingers and way too many gifts!!
And if you're struggling to visualize that many rings, it would take 3 trucks to transport them. Although David Shaw will almost certainly have enough money left over to pay for the gas.
Biography
A former computer science professor at Columbia University, David Shaw is the founder of D.E. Shaw, which manages over $70 billion in assets.
Shaw founded the quantitative hedge fund, known for its use of sophisticated mathematical modeling and algorithms, in 1988.
In 2002, Shaw created an executive committee to oversee the company, and has since stepped away from its day-to-day operations.
Several former execs have started their own successful businesses, including Amazon founder Jeff Bezos and Two Sigma hedge fund's John Overdeck.
Shaw is now chief scientist at D.E. Shaw Research, a computational biochemistry research firm.
Financial Assets
Financial assets information not available.
Monthly wealth history
Fortune comparison
Historical data not available for comparison