Hans-Ueli Rihs & family
Source of wealth: Hearing Aids
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The scale of their wealth
Health
The price of life
Let's compare Hans-Ueli Rihs & family's fortune with the healthcare spending of a massive country
Hans-Ueli Rihs & family could fund the entire healthcare system of DR Congo, with a population of over 105,800,000 people, for approximately 0.7 years.
But even if we compare their fortune with that of a rich country
On the other end, Hans-Ueli Rihs & family could cover the healthcare spending of Luxembourg, considered the most heavily funded healthcare system in the world, for 0.3 years.
Education
Buying the future
Let's also compare their fortune with education spending, first with a poor country
Hans-Ueli Rihs & family could cover the total cost of Nigeria's education system, the most populous country in Africa with over 243,000,000 inhabitants, for 0.5 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 Hans-Ueli Rihs & family could pay for it entirely for 0.6 years.
Research
The monopoly on progress
Coming full circle, we think it's also interesting to add another gigantic country
Hans-Ueli Rihs & family could fully fund the state research budget of Pakistan, the fifth most populous country in the world with over 260,000,000 inhabitants, for 2.7 years.
And of course, the country that invests the most per capita worldwide
But even if we compare the total wealth of Hans-Ueli Rihs & family 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
Hans-Ueli Rihs & family's fortune is equivalent to 11 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.
Hans-Ueli Rihs & family could buy 2,947,816 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 Hans-Ueli Rihs & family will almost certainly have enough money left over to pay for the gas.
Biography
Hans-Ueli Rihs is Swiss hearing aid manufacturer Sonova's second largest individual shareholder, with a 6% stake.
With fellow billionaire Beda Diethelm, Rihs and his brother Andy (d. 2018), grew Sonova into the world's largest hearing aid manufacturer, after their father Ernest (d. 1980) bought the company in 1965.
Sonova, which is publicly traded on the SIX Swiss Exchange, generated nearly $4 billion of revenue in fiscal 2024.
Rihs also owns privately-held Swiss Casinos AG, which operates four casinos in Switzerland, and Swiss soccer team BSC Young Boys.
Financial Assets
Monthly wealth history
Fortune comparison
Historical data not available for comparison