Carlos Slim’s fortune exceeds 100 billion dollars for the first time.
Mexican businessman Slim has added around US$27 billion to his fortune in 2023.
Mexican telecommunications magnate Carlos Slim’s fortune has surpassed the $100 billion mark for the first time, a dozen years after he was crowned the world’s richest person.
While the 83-year-old tycoon has made few major reforms to his portfolio in recent years, he is riding the “Superpeso,” which has seen the Mexican currency rise about 14 percent against the U.S. dollar this year.
Slim has added about US$27 billion to his fortune in 2023, including US$3 billion on Thursday, December 14th, to increase his lead as the richest man in Latin American, according to the Bloomberg Billionaires Index. Overall, he has fallen in the global rankings to 11th place, as tech founders have largely taken over the top spots.
The bulk of Slim’s US$101.5 billion fortune comes from telecommunications company América Móvil, which collects almost 40 percent of its revenue in Mexican pesos and also has exposure to the euro thanks to its operations in Austria. Shares of Slim’s Grupo Carso, which does everything from construction to operating restaurants and stores, have soared 109% this year and are the best performers in Mexico’s benchmark index.
This year, Slim’s companies made one of their biggest bets yet on crude oil production in Mexico by purchasing the mega Zama oil project. His Spanish construction company FCC raised 965 million euros (US$1.1 billion) by selling a 25 percent stake in a unit to Canadian pension operator CPPIB and is reportedly looking to acquire a majority stake in property company Metrovacesa. In November, América Móvil increased its majority stake in Telekom Austria AG to 58 percent.
Arturo Elías Ayub, Slim’s spokesman and son-in-law, declined to comment.
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