The scale of their wealth
Health
The price of life
Let's compare Farris Wilks's fortune with the healthcare spending of a massive country
Farris Wilks could fund the entire healthcare system of DR Congo, with a population of over 105,800,000 people, for approximately 1.0 years.
But even if we compare their fortune with that of a rich country
On the other end, Farris Wilks could cover the healthcare spending of Luxembourg, considered the most heavily funded healthcare system in the world, for 0.4 years.
Education
Buying the future
Let's also compare their fortune with education spending, first with a poor country
Farris Wilks could cover the total cost of Nigeria's education system, the most populous country in Africa with over 243,000,000 inhabitants, for 0.6 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 Farris Wilks could pay for it entirely for 0.9 years.
Research
The monopoly on progress
Coming full circle, we think it's also interesting to add another gigantic country
Farris Wilks could fully fund the state research budget of Pakistan, the fifth most populous country in the world with over 260,000,000 inhabitants, for 3.6 years.
And of course, the country that invests the most per capita worldwide
But even if we compare the total wealth of Farris Wilks 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 0.1 years.
Gold
Everyday luxuries
Farris Wilks's fortune is equivalent to 15 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 $549.34.
Farris Wilks could buy 3,932,600 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 1 trucks to transport them. Although Farris Wilks will almost certainly have enough money left over to pay for the gas.
Biography
Farris and his brother Dan got a combined $3.5 billion (pretax) in 2011 selling their fracking company to a group led by Singapore-based firm Temasek.
The brothers have acquired more than 672,000 acres of land in six different states across the West, becoming America's 12th-largest landowners.
The brothers began their careers as stone masons, like their father, founding Wilks Masonry in 1995.
In 2002 they went into fracking, launching Frac Tech and growing it into an oil and natural gas giant before cashing out less than a decade later.
The brothers are also investing in oil and gas businesses, including fracking company U.S. Well Services and data provider Dawson Geophysical Company.
Financial Assets
Monthly wealth history
Fortune comparison
Historical data not available for comparison