Jim Ratcliffe tops the Northwest list, according to this year’s edition of The Sunday Times Rich List, published today online and in a special 76-page Sunday Times magazine with the newspaper on Sunday, May 17, 2026.
Chemicals magnate and Ineos CEO Sir Jim Ratcliffe oversees a sprawling petrochemicals empire spanning 27 countries. As a result of rising debt, falling revenues and a £515.7 million loss, the valuation of Ineos has been cut to £17 billion. Ratcliffe’s 29 per cent stake in Manchester United FC is worth £1.4 billion.
This year’s list of 350 individuals and families together holds combined wealth of £783.5 billion — a sum larger than the annual GDP of Belgium ($776 billion), Sweden ($760 billion) and Israel ($719 billion). It represents about a quarter of the UK’s total annual GDP.
Sir Elton John, Lord Lloyd-Webber, Sir Mick Jagger, Keith Richards, JK Rowling, Charlotte Tilbury and Sir Lewis Hamilton all appear in the annual survey.
The minimum entry level dips to £340 million — another indicator of a subdued year.
Robert Watts, compiler of the Sunday Times Rich List, said: “This year’s Rich List is a tale of two exoduses. One in six of the individuals and families who appeared on the list two years ago don’t feature this time.
“Many foreign billionaires who have been living in the UK have also dropped out because they have moved away. We have also seen a sharp rise in the number of British nationals now resident in Dubai, Switzerland and Monaco. As UK nationals these people remain on our Rich List — wherever they now live.
“These two exoduses pose challenges for the UK economy and its public finances. Will more of the wealthy now set up or grow their ventures overseas and in doing so create fewer jobs here? How much tax — if any — will Rachel Reeves’s Treasury be able to extract from those affluent Brits who have now left the country?
“For nearly 40 years the Sunday Times Rich List has analysed the fortunes of Britain’s most affluent people. We believe understanding where wealth lies and where it is being accumulated is a vital part of a functioning democracy.
“Over the years our research has told us a lot about our country, charting the way a generation of largely self-made entrepreneurs overtook the old money of the landed gentry.
“This year’s edition shines a light on fortunes made from artificial intelligence, driverless cars and crypto-currencies as well as baby milk, make-up, hoodies and other everyday items. We know many of our readers find those rags-to-riches stories of entrepreneurs who started out with little more than a laptop and an idea particularly inspiring.”
