THE global ranks of billionaires grew by 199 people in the past year, but none came close to unseating Carlos Slim, the world’s richest man, who added $20.5 billion (€14.83bn) to his coffers, according to Forbes magazine’s annual tally.

MEXICAN telecom tycoon Carlos Slim Helú has overtaken Microsoft founder Bill Gates as the world’s richest person, Mexican financial website Sentido Comun has reported.