Robert Johnson
Source of wealth: Black Entertainment Television
...
...
The scale of their wealth
Health
The price of life
Let's compare Robert Johnson's fortune with the healthcare spending of a massive country
Robert Johnson could fund the entire healthcare system of DR Congo, with a population of over 105,800,000 people, for approximately 0.5 years.
But even if we compare their fortune with that of a rich country
On the other end, Robert Johnson could cover the healthcare spending of Luxembourg, considered the most heavily funded healthcare system in the world, for 0.2 years.
Education
Buying the future
Let's also compare their fortune with education spending, first with a poor country
Robert Johnson could cover the total cost of Nigeria's education system, the most populous country in Africa with over 243,000,000 inhabitants, for 0.3 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 Robert Johnson could pay for it entirely for 0.4 years.
Research
The monopoly on progress
Coming full circle, we think it's also interesting to add another gigantic country
Robert Johnson could fully fund the state research budget of Pakistan, the fifth most populous country in the world with over 260,000,000 inhabitants, for 1.7 years.
And of course, the country that invests the most per capita worldwide
But even if we compare the total wealth of Robert Johnson 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 0.0 years.
Gold
Everyday luxuries
Robert Johnson's fortune is equivalent to 7 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.
Robert Johnson could buy 1,828,633 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 0 trucks to transport them. Although Robert Johnson will almost certainly have enough money left over to pay for the gas.
Biography
Robert L. Johnson made history by launching Black Entertainment Television (BET) in 1980.
BET became the first Black-owned company to trade on the New York Stock Exchange starting in 1991.
Johnson, who cofounded BET with his now ex-wife Sheila Johnson, took BET private at a $1.3 billion valuation in 1998, then flipped it three years later to Viacom for $3 billion.
He led a group that paid $300 million for the Charlotte Bobcats (now Hornets) NBA expansion team in 2003. He sold his majority stake to Michael Jordan in 2010.
Today, his RLJ Companies spans private equity, auto dealerships and RLJ Lodging Trust, a publicly traded hotel REIT.
Financial Assets
Financial assets information not available.
Monthly wealth history
Fortune comparison
Historical data not available for comparison