Rishi Sunak and his wife Akshata Murty have lost more than £200million during the past year – which represents around £500,000 a day.
But the Prime Minister’s family is still among Britain’s richest, worth £529 million according to The Sunday Times Rich List.
A fall in the value of Ms Murty’s stake in her father’s IT firm Infosys – as investors worried about the future of the Indian tech sector – caused the couple’s wealth to take the big hit.
Meanwhile, the Hinduja family – who owns the Indian conglomerate Hinduja Group – topped the list for the second year in a row as their fortune jumped by more than £6billion to £35billion.
It is the largest fortune to be recorded in 35 editions of the Sunday Times Rich List. The Hindujas’ company deals with everything from banking and oil to automotive groups, healthcare and cyber-security.
Sir Jim Ratcliffe, currently bidding to take control of Manchester United Football Club, is this year’s highest climber and is now the second richest person in Britain.
His wealth soared by £23.6billion over the past year as researchers concluded his company INEOS is worth “at least £40billion”.
Sir Jim, who was born in Failsworth, Greater Manchester, topped the rich list back in 2018 when his personal wealth was estimated at around £21billion.
The 70-year-old plans to purchase a majority stake in United for around £5billion before taking full control in 2026. In 2022, Sir Jim was estimated to be worth £6.075billion, putting him in 27th place on the rich list.
Robert Watts, who compiles the annual chart of wealth, said: “This year we have new information about the scale of INEOS’s profits and that has made us confident that INEOS is now worth at least £40billion.
“We have also learned more about the personal assets Jim has accumulated over the past 25 years.”
The Sunday Times Rich List revealed the number of billionaires fell for the first time in 14 years. There are now 171 in the UK.
Sir Richard Branson’s wealth dropped by £1.8billion as the value of his fortune fell by 40 percent over the last year.
The decline was largely due to losses incurred by his space tourism and satellite ventures.
Virgin Orbit collapsed into bankruptcy after spending £800 million on a space launch business.
The businessman and his family were worth about £4.2billion last year, said the Sunday Times, placing him 44th on the list.
Three women feature in this year’s top 10 – the brewing billionaire Charlene de Carvalho-Heineken, packaging heiress Kirsten Rausing and Alannah Weston, former chairwoman of the Selfridges Group.
But Mr Watts added: “This year’s list shows a golden period for the super rich is over. For the first time in 14 years we’ve seen the number of UK billionaires fall.
“Two years ago we raised concerns about an unsettling boom in the fortunes of the very wealthy that continued during the political instability around Brexit and the pandemic.
“This is not a crash, but there are household names who have lost vast sums over the past year.” Inventor Sir James Dyson, the UK’s fifth richest, Primark owners the Weston family and Bet365 owner Denise Coates and her family remain on the list.
Mr Dyson is on the list with an estimated wealth of £23billion, while the Westons’ wealth is said to be £14.5billion. Ms Coates and her family are worth £8.8billion.
This year’s expanded list features 350 people and families – with a minimum of £350million needed to be included. David and Victoria Beckham, Sir Elton John and Lord Lloyd-Webber are among other famous names who made the cut.
