Slim pickings: Not for world’s richest man Carlos

Mexico telecoms czar Carlos Slim topped the Forbes annual world’s richest list, holding the edge over Microsoft’s Bill Gates who continued to give away billions to charity.

Despite a $6bn (€4.5bn) hit to his wealth from slumping stock markets over the past year, Forbes said Slim’s $69bn (€52bn) was enough to keep him on top of its global billionaires list for the third straight year.

Gates, the co-founder of Microsoft, had a fortune worth $61bn, still hefty after having given away $28bn over recent years to global causes such as fighting Aids and polio.