William Young
Source of wealth: Plastics
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The scale of their wealth
Health
The price of life
Let's compare William Young's fortune with the healthcare spending of a massive country
William Young could fund the entire healthcare system of DR Congo, with a population of over 105,800,000 people, for approximately 1.2 years.
But even if we compare their fortune with that of a rich country
On the other end, William Young could cover the healthcare spending of Luxembourg, considered the most heavily funded healthcare system in the world, for 0.5 years.
Education
Buying the future
Let's also compare their fortune with education spending, first with a poor country
William Young could cover the total cost of Nigeria's education system, the most populous country in Africa with over 243,000,000 inhabitants, for 0.8 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 William Young could pay for it entirely for 1.0 years.
Research
The monopoly on progress
Coming full circle, we think it's also interesting to add another gigantic country
William Young could fully fund the state research budget of Pakistan, the fifth most populous country in the world with over 260,000,000 inhabitants, for 4.3 years.
And of course, the country that invests the most per capita worldwide
But even if we compare the total wealth of William Young 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
William Young's fortune is equivalent to 18 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.
William Young could buy 4,721,530 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 William Young will almost certainly have enough money left over to pay for the gas.
Biography
William Young is CEO of plastic container maker Plastipak, which does some $3.7 billion in annual sales.
Young and his father founded Plastipak in 1967, shortly after he graduated from the University of Detroit Mercy with an engineering degree
After six years of running the business, the duo sold the majority to Beatrice Foods for an undisclosed amount.
In 1982, the family bought back Plastipak. Three decades later, they sold a minority stake to a division of Goldman Sachs. They bought out Goldman by 2020.
Financial Assets
Financial assets information not available.
Monthly wealth history
Fortune comparison
Historical data not available for comparison