Pavel Valeryevich.

Gulf Today, Staff Reporter

The latest data of the Forbes magazine revealed that the founder of the instant messaging application "Telegram," Pavel Valeryevich Durov, is considered the richest resident in the UAE, with a fortune of $ 15.1 billion, and is ranked 115th in the world.

This is according to the list of "real-time billionaires." The UAE is home to 11 billionaires, including 4 Emirati billionaires.

Durov is one of the most prominent foreign billionaires based in Dubai. Emirati Abdullah Bin Ahmed Al Ghurair, founder of Mashreq Bank, came in second place with a fortune of $2.8 billion, followed by Hussain Sajwani, founder and chairman of Damac Properties, in third place with a fortune of $2.7 billion, while Abdullah Al-Futtaim and his family, owner of Al-Futtaim Group, ranked third and fourth at the state level, with a fortune of $2.4 billion. According to Forbes.

Last year, the wealth of the young businessman exceeded $17 billion, and in 2020 it amounted to $2.4 billion. Before 2019, the wealth of the Russian billionaire residing in Dubai was at $2.7 billion, and at $1.7 billion the year before.

In the context, a previous research by "Henley & Partners" reviewing the richest cities in the world for the year 2022 showed that Dubai ranks first in the Middle East and North Africa and 23rd in the world, home to the world's richest people. After recording an 18% increase in high-net-worth individuals in the first six months of the year, the emirate's affluent population has risen to 67,900, from 54,000 in June last year.