Wealth Of 5 Richest Men Doubled Since 2020 As 5 Bn People Fallen Into Poverty: Oxfam

In a dramatic development, Oxfam International in a report has said the five richest men on the planet have doubled their fortunes to USD 869 billion since 2020 and nearly five billion people have fallen further into poverty. 

The report titled "Inequality Inc." revealed the insidious link between unchecked corporate power and rising inequality. With a combined wealth of USD 10.2 trillion, which surpasses the GDPs of Africa and Latin America combined, seven of the top ten largest corporations in the world are headed by billionaires. 

These massive corporations are not just economic titans; they are engines of inequality, pressuring workers, dodging taxes and privatising public services all the while pumping trillions of dollars into the bank accounts of their billionaire owners, it added. 

The report stated that the fortunes of the five richest men have shot up by 114 per cent since 2020. It predicted the world could have its first-ever trillionaire in just a decade while it would take more than two centuries to end poverty. 

A billionaire is running or the principal shareholder of seven out of ten of the world’s biggest corporations. Also, 148 top corporations made USD 1.8 trillion in profits, 52 per cent up on a three-year average and dished out huge payouts to rich shareholders while hundreds of millions faced cuts in real-term pay.

The report added that despite representing just 21 per cent of the global population, rich countries in the global north own 69 per cent of global wealth and are home to 74 per cent of the world’s billionaire wealth.

Share ownership overwhelmingly benefits the richest. The top one per cent owns 43 per cent of all global financial assets. They hold 48 per cent of financial wealth in the Middle East, 50 per cent in Asia and 47 per cent in Europe. 

Oxfam urged a new era of public action, including public services, corporate regulation, breaking up monopolies and enacting permanent wealth and excess profit taxes.

“We’re witnessing the beginnings of a decade of division, with billions of people shouldering the economic shockwaves of pandemic, inflation and war, while billionaires’ fortunes boom. This inequality is no accident; the billionaire class is ensuring corporations deliver more wealth to them at the expense of everyone else,” said Amitabh Behar, Interim Executive Director, Oxfam International.

Further, the report stated that the past three years have witnessed a supercharged surge in extreme wealth, solidifying a new class of uber-rich while global poverty remains stubbornly stuck at pre-pandemic levels. Billionaires have amassed an additional USD 3.3 trillion since 2020, their fortunes ballooning three times faster than inflation. 

Meanwhile, nearly 800 million workers grapple with stagnating wages, losing USD 1.5 trillion over the past two years. This translates to nearly a lost month’s worth of wages for each worker.

The report also unveiled the insidious tentacles of corporate monopolies, further exacerbating the wealth gap. Bernard Arnault, the luxury goods kingpin, wields control over France's biggest media outlet, effectively shaping public discourse. 

Aliko Dangote, Africa's richest man, enjoys a near-monopoly on Nigerian cement, raising concerns about a burgeoning private empire. These monopolies stifle innovation, crush competition, and ultimately, harm consumers and workers alike.