The billionaires club revealed
 The number of billionaires in the world has risen to nearly 1,000 - with 29 Britons now making it into the ultra-rich club.

Forbes's 2007 list reveals 946 men and women are dollar billionaires.

Microsoft founder Bill Gates came top of the list for the 13th straight year, with $56 billion - £29.04 billion - in the bank.

The highest ranking Briton - the Duke of Westminster - only ranks 55th in the list. He and his family are sitting on a personal wealth mountain of $11 billion (£5.71 billion).

Chelsea owner Roman Abramovich - worth an estimated $18.7 billion (£9.7 billion) - is listed as the world's 16th richest person.

Just under two-thirds of this year's list are self-made billionaires, and of those ten are women.

Joining them as Britain's only woman to feature is JK Rowling with an estimated $1 billion (£516.8 million) for the writer.

Steve Forbes, Editor in Chief of the magazine said "this is the richest year ever in human history".

© Independent Television News Limited 2007. All rights reserved.