Stewart Horejsi & family
Source of wealth: Berkshire Hathaway
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The scale of their wealth
Health
The price of life
Let's compare Stewart Horejsi & family's fortune with the healthcare spending of a massive country
Stewart Horejsi & family could fund the entire healthcare system of DR Congo, with a population of over 105,800,000 people, for approximately 1.8 years.
But even if we compare their fortune with that of a rich country
On the other end, Stewart Horejsi & family could cover the healthcare spending of Luxembourg, considered the most heavily funded healthcare system in the world, for 0.8 years.
Education
Buying the future
Let's also compare their fortune with education spending, first with a poor country
Stewart Horejsi & family could cover the total cost of Nigeria's education system, the most populous country in Africa with over 243,000,000 inhabitants, for 1.2 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 Stewart Horejsi & family could pay for it entirely for 1.6 years.
Research
The monopoly on progress
Coming full circle, we think it's also interesting to add another gigantic country
Stewart Horejsi & 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 6.7 years.
And of course, the country that invests the most per capita worldwide
But even if we compare the total wealth of Stewart Horejsi & 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
Stewart Horejsi & family's fortune is equivalent to 27 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.
Stewart Horejsi & family could buy 7,226,720 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 Stewart Horejsi & family will almost certainly have enough money left over to pay for the gas.
Biography
Stewart Horejsi began buying stock in Berkshire Hathaway for as little as $265 per share after reading John Train's "The Money Masters" in 1980.
He attended annual meetings when they were fewer than a dozen people in folding chairs; now Berkshire's class A stock is one of the world's most valuable.
After graduating from the University of Kansas in 1962, Horejsi returned home to Salina, Kansas to take over his family's welding supply company.
He expanded the business, investing profits in Berkshire Hathaway stock, and has spent much of his life managing his family's money.
Horejsi (pronounced hor-ish) still owns some Berkshire shares, but has also put hundreds of millions of dollars into his own closed-end mutual fund.
Financial Assets
Monthly wealth history
Fortune comparison
Historical data not available for comparison