King Charles III's personal net worth has skyrocketed to an astonishing £610 million ($772 million), according to the latest edition of the Sunday Times Rich List. The monarch's fortune has seen a remarkable £10 million ($12.5 million) increase over the past year, propelling him to the 258th position on the list of the UK's wealthiest individuals and families, up from 263rd place in 2023.
The King's personal wealth, which is derived from inheritance, property, and investments, now significantly surpasses that of his late mother, Queen Elizabeth II. In 2022, the Queen's net worth was estimated at £370 million ($470 million), meaning King Charles III now possesses £240 million ($300 million) more than his predecessor.
A significant portion of the King's financial fortune can be attributed to the private estates he inherited upon the passing of Queen Elizabeth II. These include the 20,000-acre Sandringham estate in Norfolk, valued at approximately £250 million ($315 million), and the 50,000-acre Balmoral estate in Aberdeenshire, estimated to be worth £210 million ($265 million).
The Sunday Times Rich List assesses the sovereign's wealth based solely on personal assets, excluding the Crown Estate, the Duchy of Lancaster, and the Crown Jewels, which are held in trust by the King for the nation. Prior to his accession to the throne, King Charles III, then the Prince of Wales, received a private income of around £23 million ($29 million) per year from the Duchy of Cornwall. This income was used to cover non-official expenditure for himself and his family, as well as the official costs of personal staff, his office, and official residences.
King Charles III's careful financial management throughout the years has contributed to his impressive net worth. In the 1990s, following his £17 million ($22.5 million) divorce settlement with Princess Diana, the King prudently saved money from profits made through the Duchy of Cornwall. Despite the Duchy being considered part of the crown, exempting royals from paying taxes on its profits, King Charles III has voluntarily paid income tax on his holdings since 1993.
The Sunday Times Rich List, released on Friday, will be featured in a 76-page special edition of its Sunday magazine. The list reveals the wealth of the 350 richest individuals and families in the UK, taking into account identifiable wealth such as land, property, art, racehorses, and significant shares in publicly quoted companies.
Notable entries on this year's list include Prime Minister Rishi Sunak and his wife Akshata Murty, whose personal wealth has surged by more than £120 million ($150 million) to £651 million ($822 million), surpassing the King. The billionaire Hinduja family, led by Gopi Hinduja, topped the list for the third consecutive year with a fortune of £37.2 billion ($47 billion), a £2 billion ($2.5 billion) increase from the previous year.
Other prominent figures on the list include Sir Paul McCartney, who became the UK's first billionaire musician with a net worth of £1 billion ($1.27 billion), and David and Victoria Beckham, ranking 297th with a combined wealth of £455 million ($575 million), just below musician Elton John, who placed 291st with £470 million ($595 million) in assets.
The 2024 Sunday Times Rich List highlights the growing wealth disparity in the UK, with the number of billionaires falling for the second year in a row, from 171 to 165, after peaking at 177 in 2022. Despite this decline, the personal fortune of King Charles III continues to rise, solidifying his position among the nation's wealthiest individuals.
