Rudolf Maag
Source of wealth: Medical devices
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The scale of their wealth
Health
The price of life
Let's compare Rudolf Maag's fortune with the healthcare spending of a massive country
Rudolf Maag could fund the entire healthcare system of DR Congo, with a population of over 105,800,000 people, for approximately 3.0 years.
But even if we compare their fortune with that of a rich country
On the other end, Rudolf Maag could cover the healthcare spending of Luxembourg, considered the most heavily funded healthcare system in the world, for 1.3 years.
Education
Buying the future
Let's also compare their fortune with education spending, first with a poor country
Rudolf Maag could cover the total cost of Nigeria's education system, the most populous country in Africa with over 243,000,000 inhabitants, for 2.0 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 Rudolf Maag could pay for it entirely for 2.7 years.
Research
The monopoly on progress
Coming full circle, we think it's also interesting to add another gigantic country
Rudolf Maag could fully fund the state research budget of Pakistan, the fifth most populous country in the world with over 260,000,000 inhabitants, for 11.2 years.
And of course, the country that invests the most per capita worldwide
But even if we compare the total wealth of Rudolf Maag 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
Rudolf Maag's fortune is equivalent to 46 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.
Rudolf Maag could buy 12,154,200 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 2 trucks to transport them. Although Rudolf Maag will almost certainly have enough money left over to pay for the gas.
Biography
Rudolf Maag's fortune stems from medical devices.
Maag got an M.B.A. from Insead in 1973 and began working his way up the corporate ladder at pharmaceutical company Sandoz AG of Switzerland.
He later moved to dental giant Straumann, where in 1990 he bought out the medical device division and later took it public as Stratec Medical.
In 1999 he merged Stratec with Swiss medical device powerhouse Synthes and built up a 15% stake, which was later sold to Johnson & Johnson.
Financial Assets
Monthly wealth history
Fortune comparison
Historical data not available for comparison