Françoise Bettencourt Meyers, the pianist heiress of L’Oreal who explores the mysteries of the Bible through her writings, shattered glass ceilings by becoming the first woman to amass a staggering fortune of $100 billion. Right behind her is Alice Walton, the heiress of Walmart.
The heiress of the beauty giant L’Oréal has achieved something no other woman in the world could: she became the first woman to amass a fortune of $100 billion. Françoise Bettencourt Meyers, granddaughter of the founder of L’Oréal, who also owns illustrious brands like Prada, Yves Saint Laurent, and Lancôme, reached the $100 billion mark after the company’s stocks, founded by her grandfather Eugène Schueller in 1909, hit a record high.
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Bettencourt secured the 12th position on the Bloomberg Billionaires Index after earning an impressive $836 million at Wednesday’s closing, reaching a peak of $100.2 billion, placing her alongside billionaires like Warren Buffett and Mark Zuckerberg. The published author (who has written books on Greek mythology and the Bible), owning a 33 percent stake in L’Oréal, the world’s largest cosmetics company, inherited it after the death of her mother, Liliane Bettencourt, in 2017, reported Bloomberg.
Bettencourt Meyers, billionaire by numbers and pianist at heart, serves as the president of her family’s holding, Téthys, which holds the stake in L’Oréal. The 70-year-old is actively involved in her family’s philanthropic foundation, the Bettencourt Schueller Foundation, supporting French endeavors in science and the arts.
Unlike other billionaires who love the social scene (her mother Liliane was an enthusiastic socialite), Françoise Bettencourt Meyers is quite reclusive, preferring the company of her two grand pianos, a Steinway and a Yamaha, or immersing herself in books – hobbies she learned as a child.
Bettencourt Meyers shared, “I have always loved shared moments among friends, in small groups, that’s how the best friendships are formed. I still don’t like large dinners; I prefer cozy brunches.” She may not enjoy grand parties, but entering the $100 billion club certainly calls for a celebration. Alice Walton, daughter of the founder of the American retail giant Walmart, is the second richest woman in the world, with a net worth of $70.1 billion.
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