Bill Gates, the founder of Microsoft, topped the Billionaires' List of Bloomberg, released on Friday. He grabbed the title World's Richest Person from Carlos Slim of Mexico.

Responsible for his gaining the top spot he last held in 2007 was the rise of Microsoft shares to a five-year high on Thursday, increasing his net worth by 16 per cent in the past 12 months.

Mr Gates owes 436 million Microsoft shares which hit a five0year high on May 15 as a result of strong U.S, markets and confidence in the online software business.

On the other hand, shares of Mr Slim's America Movil declined 14 per cent for the same period as a result of the approval by the Mexican Congress of a bill that reduced his dominance of the country's mobile market, chopping of $3 billion from his fortune, which stood at $72.1 billion.

Australia's richest person, Gina Rinehart, is 41st on the list with a fortune of S17.1.

By country, the US has the most number of billionaires at 36, underscoring that the country continues to be a breeding and nurturing ground for wealth generation.

Here is the top 10 list of the world's wealthiest people.

1. Bill Gates - $72.7 B

2. Carlos Slim - $72.1 B

3. Warren Buffett - $69.7 B

4. Amacio Ortega - $56 B

5. Ingvar Kamprad - $55.6 B

6. Charles Koch - $45.2 B

7. David Kock - $45.2 B

8. Larry Ellison - $41.6 B

9. Christy Walton - $37.9 B

10. Jim Walton - $36.1 B.

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