Ryanair chief Michael O'Leary has become a billionaire for the first time
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Ryanair chief Michael O'Leary has become a billionaire for the first time

There's rich, and then there's Michael O'Leary.

The controversial Ryanair chief executive has become Ireland's latest billionaire and is now the 1,999th richest person on earth, according to Forbes.

O'Leary has an estimated worth of $1.1 billion – which is equal to around €885 million in Ireland or £793 million in the UK.

Most of the 56-year-old's fortune comes from his 3.91% stake in Ryanair, which is worth roughly $905 million.

But as well as his huge holding in the Irish budget airline, high-flying O'Leary owns a large amount of land and horses.

His Cheltenham and Grand National-winning race horses (War of Attrition, Don Cossack, and Rule The World) were key to turning his many millions into a billion.

O'Leary's $1.1bn fortune makes him just over ⅓ as rich as US President Donald Trump – who was ranked 766th this year with a net worth of $3.1bn.

US President Donald Trump is just under ⅓ as rich as Ryanair's Michael O'Leary (Picture: Getty)

Overall, nine Irish tycoons made Forbes' annual world billionaires list.

The highest ranking Irish citizen is Indian-born construction tycoon Pallonji Mistry, who is worth a cool $17.8bn – making him the 66th richest person in the world.

The other Irish billionaires are Lone Star Funds Chairman John Grayken ($6.6bn), media tycoon Dennis O’Brien ($4.6bn), Campbell Soup heir John Dorance III ($2.8bn), financier Dermot Desmond ($2.3bn), and Stripe founders John and Patrick Collison ($1bn each).

At the top of the Forbes list was Amazon CEO Jeff Bezos, with an estimated wealth of $127.3bn.

Microsoft founder Bill Gates was second on the list with an estimated wealth of $91.2bn, while investor Warren Buffet completed the top three with $87.7bn to his name.

Of the 2,208 total billionaires on earth, the majority are from the US, closely followed by China.

Take a look at the Forbes Billionaires List 2018 here...