The world’s richest woman is none other than Francoise Bettencourt Meyers, the heiress to L’Oreal cosmetics. With a net worth of $72 billion, she tops Forbes’ list of the world’s wealthiest women and ranks 14th on its overall billionaires index.
More About The World’s Richest Woman
Francoise Bettencourt Meyers inherited her wealth from her late mother Liliane Bettencourt who was one of the two founders behind L’Oreal’s success story.
She took over as chairwoman in 1997 and has since become an active shareholder in several companies including Nestle SA and Sanofi Aventis.
In addition to being wealthy through inheritance, Francoise also holds a degree in philosophy from Sorbonne University which she obtained at just 19 years old!
Her philanthropic efforts include donating millions towards education initiatives for underprivileged children across Europe as well as research into Alzheimer’s disease – something that affected her own mother before passing away last year aged 94.
In 2017 alone, it is estimated that Franciose donated more than $200 million dollars to charity – making this not only one of the most successful businesswomen but also one with a heart for giving back too!