Australian Billionaires Double Wealth Surges 160% Over Decade

Donald Trump's personal wealth has more than doubled since the start of the 2024 election campaign, largely driven by cryptocurrency investments, even as the U.S. faces recession risks and global economic turmoil linked to his tariffs. Meanwhile, Australia has witnessed a significant increase in billionaire wealth, with the number of billionaires more than doubling from 74 in 2015 to 161 in 2025, and their total wealth surging by 160% to $667.8 billion, primarily through property, retail, investments, and mining. This growing wealth concentration has exacerbated inequality, with Australia's richest holding over 116,000 times the wealth of the bottom 50%, amid a severe housing crisis where many young people are locked out of the market and rental affordability is critically low. Oxfam Australia has called for urgent tax reforms to address this disparity, warning that such inequality is economically and socially dangerous while millions struggle with the cost of living. Additionally, the wealth of American billionaires has also doubled over the past eight years, highlighting a broader global trend of increasing wealth concentration among the ultra-rich. These developments underscore the widening economic divide both in the U.S. and Australia, raising calls for policy interventions to ensure fairer wealth distribution.