5 biggest billionaire gainers and losers of 2014

Tthe world's richest man, Bill Gates, saw his net worth grow by $10.5 billion in 2014 earning him third place on the Wealth-X ranking of this year's biggest gainers.

Alibaba founder and executive chairman Jack Ma is this year's biggest financial gainer as the billionaire entrepreneur's fortune has swelled by a whopping $18.5 billion this year to $29.2 billion, a report says.

According to private wealth consultancy, Wealth-X, the former English teacher-turned billionaire entrepreneur is the biggest gainer of this year as his fortune increased 173 per cent, largely due to Alibaba's blockbuster IPO in September and the subsequent strong performance of the company's stock.

Legendary investor Warren Buffett stood at second place on the Wealth-X list of this year's top gainers.

The Berkshire Hathaway chairman raked in $13.5 billion in 2014, a 23 per cent increase from last year, to push his fortune to $72.6 billion.

Meanwhile, the world's richest man, Bill Gates, saw his net worth grow by $10.5 billion in 2014 to reach $83.1 billion, earning him third place on the Wealth-X ranking of this year's biggest gainers.

The top five biggest gainers of this year also include, Mark Zuckerberg, ranked fourth on the list as his fortune rose by $8.4 billion to $33.1 billion, followed by telecommunications company Altice's founder Patrick Drahi whose fortune increased by $5.1 billion to $12.9 billion.

The individual who lost the most money this year is Russian energy tycoon Leonid Mikhelson. Mikhelson's fortune now stands at $10 billion, Wealth-X said.

The biggest shareholder of natural gas producer Novatek lost $7 billion, or 41 per cent of his wealth, in 2014, due to the plummeting Russian currency, weak oil prices and economic sanctions imposed by the West over the Russia-Ukraine conflict.

The top five losers of 2014 include Masayoshi Son (CEO, Softbank) whose net worth eroded by $5.9 billion to $13.2 billion this year, followed by Lui Chee Woo who suffered a loss of $5.5 billion in his fortune which stood at $14.1 billion in 2014.

Amazon's Jeff Bezos' fortune eroded by $5.5 billion to $28.9 billion in 2014, while Sheldon Adelson lost $5.2 billion of his wealth which now stands at $30.1 billion, Wealth-X said.

Wealth-X is the world's leading ultra high net worth (UHNW) intelligence and prospecting firm with the largest collection of curated research on UHNW individuals, defined as those with net assets of $30 million and above.