It is well known that the history of the United States is closely tied to immigration. Immigration has played a major role in shaping the country’s economy, now the world’s largest. Whether they came to pursue the American dream or to expand their businesses, immigrants have helped make the United States the country with the highest number of foreign-born billionaires, some of whom now rank among the world’s richest people.
According to Forbes’ America’s Richest Immigrants 2026, the United States currently has 144 foreign-born billionaires, up from 125 in 2025 and 92 in 2022. As of July 8, 2026, their combined net worth stood at $2.2 trillion.
In 2026, foreign-born Americans accounted for 15% of all U.S. billionaires.
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Among them are South African-born Elon Musk (Tesla, SpaceX), Russian-born Sergey Brin (Google), and Taiwanese-born Jensen Huang (Nvidia). With fortunes estimated at $927 billion, $272 billion, and $176 billion, respectively, the three men alone account for 60% of the total wealth of foreign-born U.S. billionaires.
The 144 foreign-born billionaires identified in 2026 come from 45 countries and territories, up from 42 the previous year. Nine of them have African roots, compared with eight in 2025. The latest addition to the list is Kimbal Musk, Elon Musk’s younger brother, who joined the billionaire club thanks to the value of his minority stakes in Tesla and SpaceX, companies founded by Elon Musk. Kimbal Musk has served on Tesla’s board of directors since 2004.
The nine billionaires trace their origins to five African countries: South Africa, Nigeria, Egypt, Kenya, and Morocco.
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While billionaires of African origin account for 6.25% of all foreign-born billionaires by number, their share of total wealth is much larger. As of July 8, their combined net worth was estimated at $952.9 billion, representing 43.32% of the total wealth of the 144 foreign-born U.S. billionaires.
That share is largely attributable to Elon Musk, who was born in South Africa and whose fortune stood at $927 billion after surpassing the $1 trillion mark in June, becoming the world’s first trillionaire.
The world’s richest person, whose wealth comes primarily from his stakes in Tesla, the electric vehicle manufacturer, and SpaceX, the aerospace company he founded in 2002, alone accounts for 97.27% of the combined wealth of U.S. billionaires of African origin.
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A distant second is another South African-born billionaire, Patrick Soon-Shiong. Born in Port Elizabeth, South Africa, the medical researcher, transplant surgeon, and pharmaceutical entrepreneur invented the cancer drug Abraxane, which is used to treat lung, breast, and pancreatic cancers. He became a billionaire after selling APP Pharmaceuticals in 2008 and Abraxis BioScience in 2010 for a combined $7.4 billion. He currently owns the Los Angeles Times and holds a 4.5% stake in the Los Angeles Lakers. His fortune is currently estimated at $9.8 billion.
The top three U.S. billionaire immigrants of African origin is rounded out by Rodney Sacks, chairman of Monster Beverage Corporation, the energy drink manufacturer. His fortune is currently estimated at $3.6 billion.
Next is Haim Saban, who was born in Alexandria, Egypt. The American-Israeli-Egyptian television producer and composer is the chief executive of Saban Capital LLC, a Los Angeles-based private investment firm with interests in real estate, venture capital, and other sectors. His fortune is estimated at $3.3 billion.
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For his part, Nigerian lawyer and investment banker Adebayo O. Ogunlesi built his fortune through Global Infrastructure Partners (GIP), the private equity firm he founded in 2006, which invested globally in infrastructure projects across the energy, transportation, water, and waste sectors.
In January 2024, he sold the company to BlackRock, becoming a shareholder in what the article describes as the world’s largest multinational asset management company, with $15 trillion in assets under management by mid-2026.
Nine U.S. billionaires have African roots. As of July 8, 2026, their combined net worth stood at $952.9 billion.
The former executive vice chairman of Credit Suisse and former professor at Harvard and Yale law schools also served on Donald Trump’s “Strategic and Policy Forum” during his first term. In business circles, he is also known as the man who acquired London’s Gatwick Airport. The native of Sagamu, in Nigeria’s Ogun State, who serves as a senior managing director and board member at BlackRock, has an estimated fortune of $2.4 billion.
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Moroccan-born billionaire Marc Lasry ranks sixth among the wealthiest U.S. billionaires of African origin, with a fortune of $2.2 billion. The Moroccan-American businessman, who was born in Marrakesh and moved to the United States at the age of seven, is the co-founder and chief executive of Avenue Capital Group.
The private equity investor and hedge fund manager built his fortune by investing in sovereign debt and acquiring distressed companies. His wealth is currently estimated at more than $2.2 billion.
The list of the nine U.S. billionaires of African origin is completed by Bharat Desai, who was born in Mombasa, Kenya ($1.6 billion, IT consulting); Kimbal Musk ($1.6 billion, Tesla and SpaceX); and Tope Awotona, who was born in Lagos, Nigeria ($1.4 billion, software).
