Based on personal debt, French former trader Jérôme Kerviel is often cited as the "poorest" person, having been ordered to pay back over €4.9 billion (approx. $6.3-$6.7 billion) to Société Générale following unauthorized trades in 2008. However, this metric reflects extreme debt rather than living in absolute, daily poverty, which affects hundreds of millions.
1. Main facts and figures. According to a parliamentary research report on poverty in the UK, based on the Households below average income statistics, relative low income rates were highest for people in households in the Pakistani or Bangladeshi ethnic group.
Jérôme Kerviel (French pronunciation: [ʒeʁom kɛʁvjɛl]; born 11 January 1977) is a French rogue trader who was convicted and imprisoned in the 2008 Société Générale trading loss for breach of trust, forgery and unauthorized use of the bank's computers, resulting in losses valued at €4.9 billion.
Kerviel, whose actions nearly destroyed Societe Generale, was found guilty in 2010 of betting 50 billion euros of the French bank's money without its knowledge, leading to losses of nearly 5 billion euros. That was worth about $7.2 billion at the time.
Jerome Kerviel: The most indebted person in the world, owes $4.9 billion. Under the breeze of today's dropping economy, you might find it hard to repay $5,000 even if given some period. You might try to escape leaving everything behind if you find that you need to pay off $1, 00,000 in debt.
Jerome Kerviel looks like another man walking the streets of Paris. But behind the ordinary appearance lies a financial catastrophe so massive, it shook global markets and earned him the label of "the world's poorest man."
Although India is expected to meet the United Nations' Sustainable Development Goals on extreme poverty in due time, a very large share of its population lives on less than $3.2 a day, putting India's economy safely into the category of lower middle income economies.
Today, almost 700 million people (8.5 percent of the global population) live in extreme poverty - on less than $2.15 per day. Progress has stalled amid low growth, setbacks due to COVID-19, and increased fragility.
In 2022, Native American and Black people had the highest share of people living below 100 percent of the poverty level. Across the listed poverty levels in 2022, the Native American female population had the highest share of those below the poverty level in the US, while the white male population had the lowest share.
WASHINGTON, Oct. 15, 2024 – At today's feeble pace, it could take more than a century to eliminate poverty as it is defined for nearly half the world – people who live on less than $6.85 per day, according to the World Bank's new Poverty, Prosperity, and Planet Report.
Jay-Z's fortune now ranks just below Aliko Dangote, Abdul Samad Rabiu, and Mike Adenuga, making him officially wealthier than Femi Otedola, the nation's fourth-richest man.
The richest family in the UK is the Hinduja family, led by Gopi Hinduja, with a net worth of £35.3 billion as of the 2025 Sunday Times Rich List, topping the list for the fourth consecutive year despite a slight dip in their fortune from their vast Hinduja Group conglomerate. They are followed by the Reuben family (property, tech) and Sir Leonard Blavatnik (media, chemicals), while the Dyson family and Weston family (retail) also feature high on the list.
Being in the top 1% rich in the UK generally means having multi-million pound wealth, with thresholds around £3.1 million to £3.6 million net worth, though income figures suggest entry around £200,000+ per year; this group holds vastly more wealth than the rest of the population, often driven by pension and property assets, and they pay a significant portion of all income tax, notes sources like the ONS, Equality Trust, and IFS.
Welsh actor Michael Sheen wrote off £1 million in debt for approximately 900 families in South Wales through a Channel 4 documentary, "Michael Sheen's Secret Million Pound Giveaway," using £100,000 of his own money to buy and then cancel various debts like credit cards and loans, aiming to help struggling individuals and highlight systemic financial issues.
As the world's biggest gambling hub, Macao SAR has zero debt, bolstered by billions in gaming revenue and healthy financial reserves. Liechtenstein ranks in second, with virtually no debt and the only country in Europe ranking in the top 10.
Approximately three-quarters of Black- and White-headed families have debt, but the median debt-to-asset ratio is 50% higher among Black than White families (Copeland, 2020), with Black borrowers less likely to fully repay loans (Brevoort et al., 2021).
