Martine Rothblatt
Source of wealth: Pharmaceuticals
...
...
The scale of their wealth
Health
The price of life
Let's compare Martine Rothblatt's fortune with the healthcare spending of a massive country
Martine Rothblatt could fund the entire healthcare system of DR Congo, with a population of over 105,800,000 people, for approximately 0.8 years.
But even if we compare their fortune with that of a rich country
On the other end, Martine Rothblatt 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
Martine Rothblatt 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 Martine Rothblatt could pay for it entirely for 0.7 years.
Research
The monopoly on progress
Coming full circle, we think it's also interesting to add another gigantic country
Martine Rothblatt could fully fund the state research budget of Pakistan, the fifth most populous country in the world with over 260,000,000 inhabitants, for 3.1 years.
And of course, the country that invests the most per capita worldwide
But even if we compare the total wealth of Martine Rothblatt 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
Martine Rothblatt's fortune is equivalent to 13 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.
Martine Rothblatt could buy 3,411,216 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 Martine Rothblatt will almost certainly have enough money left over to pay for the gas.
Biography
Martine Rothblatt cofounded Sirius Satellite Radio in 1990 but left soon after the company's 1993 IPO.
Rothblatt moved into biotech after her daughter was diagnosed with pulmonary arterial hypertension, a disease that was deadly at the time.
She founded United Therapeutics in 1996; it sells five FDA-approved drugs to help people with the disease.
The publicly-traded company is experimenting with pig cloning and genetic modification to create lung transplants the human body doesn't reject.
The company's pig 'pharm' in Blacksburg, Virginia is the world's largest cloner of pigs.
Financial Assets
Monthly wealth history
Fortune comparison
Historical data not available for comparison