The rich get richer: Britain's wealthiest DOUBLE their fortunes since the financial crash and are now worth £519billion



Britain's richest people have managed to DOUBLE their wealth in the five years since the financial crash with a combined fortune of £519billion.

The fortunes of the 1,000 richest men and women in the UK rose by 15.4 per cent compared to last year, when their combined wealth stood at £449billion.

It also means that total wealth has doubled since 2009, when the top 1,000 were worth a measly £258billion.

Billions: Virgin tycoon Sir Richard Branson is worth £3.6billion.

Topping the table are industry and finance tycoons the Hinduja brothers, whose combined fortunes of £11.9billion usurpsed Arsenal FC shareholder Alisher Usmanov.



The figures were revealed today in the Sunday Times Rich List, with Philip Beresford, who compiles the rankings, saying: 'I've never seen such a phenomenal rise in personal wealth as the growth in the fortunes of Britain's 1,000 richest people over the past year.

'The richest people in Britain have had an astonishing year.

'While some may criticise them, many of these people are at the heart of the economy and their success brings more jobs and more wealth for the country.'

Meerkat: The man behind comparethemarket.com gained £50million this year.

Other familiar faces in the billionaire category include Virgin boss Sir Richard Branson, and Sir Philip Green, while the list noted a rise in online millionaires, with creators of games such as Candy Crush Saga and the Grand Theft Auto series making it onto the list.

South African Douw Steyn, who is the money behind the wildly successful, meerkat-synonymous Comparethemarket.com saw his wealth rise by £50million to £600million.

The Queen meanwhile added £10million to her personal fortune over the past year and ranks 285th with her £330million.

Young wealth: Emma Watson featured in the Young Rich List

Entertainers make up much of the list of the wealthiest under the age of 30, with Harry Potter star Emma Watson among the names with an estimated fortune of £30million.



Figures released by the Office for National Statistics last week revealed that there is a monumental gap between the rich and the poor in the UK, with the wealthiest 1 per cent owning the same amount as the 55 per cent poorest in the UK.

Last week it was announced that the list's compilers had found that the number of billionaires living in Britain has risen to more than 100 for the first time.

Some 104 billionaires are now based in the UK - more than triple the number from a decade ago - with a combined wealth of more than £301billion.

It means Britain has more billionaires per head of population than any other country, while London's total of 72 sterling billionaires is more than any other city in the world.

The list is based on 'identifiable wealth' - including land, property, other assets such as art and racehorses, or significant shares in publicly quoted companies.