Historical Figure
Carlos Slim
b. 1940
Mexican business oligarch (born 1940)
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Biography
Carlos Slim Helú is a Mexican business oligarch, investor and philanthropist. From 2010 to 2013, Slim was ranked as the richest person in the world by Forbes business magazine. He derived his fortune from his extensive holdings in a considerable number of Mexican companies through his conglomerate, Grupo Carso. As of July 2025, the Bloomberg Billionaires Index ranked him as the 18th-richest person in the world, with a net worth of US$99.1 billion, making him the richest person in Latin America.
Timeline
The story of Carlos Slim, told in moments.
Earned a civil engineering degree from UNAM and started buying distressed businesses. By age 25, he was already worth $40 million in today's dollars.
Purchased Telmex, Mexico's national telephone company, during a wave of privatization for $400 million. The deal became the foundation of the largest fortune in Latin America.
Forbes ranked him the richest person in the world, overtaking Bill Gates and Warren Buffett. His fortune: $53.5 billion.
Became the largest non-family shareholder of The New York Times Company, investing $250 million through his foundation. He owned 17.4% of the newspaper's shares.
Artifacts (13)
The Valley of Mexico from Chapultepec (Mexico City), 1850 Casimiro Castro
Casimiro Castro
Tiziano - Retrato de un caballero con perro, c. 1540-50
Titian
Tiziano Vecellio - Posible retrato de Jan van Haanen - 3424 - Museo Soumaya
Titian
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