#1 Carlos Slim Helu is the richest man in the world. Born in Mexico, Carlos Slim Helu was the fifth of six children born to Julian Slim Haddad and Linda Helu. His father founded a dry goods store in the early 1900s, and then expanded into real estate development. By the late 20s, he was quite wealthy. The younger Slim Helu, at the urging of his father, bought his first shares when he was in elementary school, and grew his wealth from there. He is the CEO of Telmex, America Movel, and Grupo Carso and focuses a portion of his wealth on philanthropic work.