Forbes reveal Kanye West is not yet the richest black man in the world

Following several publications by News agencies and blogs, Forbes has revealed that Kanye West is not yet the richest black man in the world and that the opposite is the case, stating that he is not even close to it yet

On Wednesday, March 17, 2021, several News outlets published that American Singer/rapper Kanye West is now the richest black man in the world. These opinions were published following reports that his Sneaker and clothing brand- Yeezy and Yeezy gap, have a combined value of about $4.5billion. Some reports were also made that he had additional assets of about $1.9billion

Forbes refuted these claims, saying “It is not true based on our calculations”. Around middle of last year, Forbes estimated him to be $1.4billion dollars and they stated that he is nothing close to about $6billion dollars which they claim he is.

Forbes further stated that: “In actuality, it’s nothing personal. Forbes’ much more grounded number is based on that old-fashioned idea of current revenues — not theoretical future expectations. Yeezy Gap has brought in no revenue, let alone any profits. Who knows if the line will be popular. Maybe another hip-hop star will create the next trendy sneaker in a year or two, and Yeezys will be old news. The same thinking goes for Yeezy Supply, West’s ecommerce platform. He has high hopes to turn it into a fashion destination — as of now, it just shills his shoes.

“As for Yeezy sneakers, they’re selling crazy well. The company’s revenue grew 30% last year. and its most recent limited drop, the 450 in Cloud White, sold out in under a minute. Analysts with whom we spoke agree there’s growth left in the business, and if that occurs, his net worth will continue to climb. But even that’s not 100% certain, so for now, we are sticking with 2020’s numbers,”

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In their released report, they revealed how they make calculations of people’s wealth:

“Forbes is treating West the same way we do everyone else with similar royalty-based businesses: we take the most recent year’s licensing income and apply a multiple to it to account for the fact that this is an ongoing revenue stream. This is how we value Donald Trump’s licensing businesses and Jay-Z’s music catalogue.

“West’s wildly optimistic approach to his net worth mirrors the approach used by Donald Trump, who insists the value of his name be included in any net worth estimate. Trump, who we value at $2.5 billion, says his brand has an intrinsic value, regardless of actual revenue. West and his camp are making a similar argument for businesses attached to the Yeezy name,”

Therefore, with this revelation, Aliko Dangote of Nigeria is still the richest black man in the world with Net worth of about $6billion while Robert F Smith is still the richest black man in the United States.

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