According to this year's Forbes Rich List, there are 1,210 billionaires on the planet. Bill Gates, who has given away a large chunk of his fortune to charity, no longer reigns as the wealthiest among them as he did from 1996 to 2008. Gates lost his place two years ago to Carlos Slim Helu, a Mexican telecom magnate. Warren Buffett comes in at a close third behind Helu and Gates... if, in fact, you can call a gap of $6 billion "close."
