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Earning her spot: Facebook COO Sheryl Sandberg, 44, is one of the youngest self-made billionaire women. She also penned ‘Lean In’ – a manifesto for women working their way up the corporate ladder (left)

Also new on the list is Folorunsho Alakija, who became Nigeria’s first female billionaire after striking it rich with an oil business. 

Alakija was joined on the list by 46-year-old British gambling magnate Denise Coates, who started Bet365 and is worth $1.6billion. 

Sanberg, Alakija and Coates are three of five newcomers to the list – and just 32 of the total 172 female billionaires – who are self-made. 

 

 

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Self-made: British betting company founder Denise Coates is one of five of the 42 female newcomers who made her fortune herself

 

 

 

The rest either inherited their wealth from a parent or husband, proving women still have a long way to go before they share equal wealth and power with men. 

Altogether, women make up just under 10 per cent of the total 1,645 billionaires on the list. 

Estee Lauder’s granddaughters are also new additions, thanks mostly to their inherited make-up empire fortunes.  

Jane Lauder is expected to take over control of Clinique in April while her sister Aerin Lauder Zinterhofer runs her own lifestyle brand. 

 

 

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Sisters Jane Lauder (left) and Aerin Lauder Zinterhofer (right) were also new additions to this year’s list, thanks to the fortune they inherited from make-up mogul grandmother Estee Lauder

Only one woman made it into the top 10, veteran billionaire Christy Walton who is worth $36.7billion thanks to inheriting part of the Wal-Mart family fortune when her husband, founder Sam Walton’s son John T. Walton, died.  

Other female veterans who made it onto the list again include Oprah, Spanx creator Sara Blakely, Tory Burch, and Steve Jobs’ widow Laurene Powell Jobs. 

Bill Gates became the richest man in the world again with his $76billion fortune earned for starting Microsoft. 

 

 

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The richest woman in the world: Only one woman made it onto the top 10 of the list, Wal-Mart heiress Christy Walton

 

 

The woman behind the Apple founder: Steve Jobs’ widow Laurene Powell Jobs made it back onto this years’ list with her $14billion fortune

 

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Fashion: Other veterans on the list include fashion magnet Tory Burch (left) and Spanx creator Sara Blakely (right)

Television hit-maker: Oprah came it at number number 580 of the total 1645 billionaires on the list

WORLD’S YOUNGEST BILLIONAIRE IS MYSTERIOUS UNIVERSITY OF LONDON GRADUATE WHO MADE FORTUNE INVESTING IN CHINESE REAL ESTATE

The youngest billionaire in the world is also a woman. 

24-year-old Perenna Kei became China’s newest billionaire in December when Logan Property Holdings went public on the Hong Kong Stock Exchange. 

Kei has an 85 per cent stake in the company, more than her 47-year-old father Ji Haipeng who is chairman. 

Her stake in the company is operated through a trust, which her father is excluded from – explaining her monumental rise. 

 

Rapidly expanding: Kei owns an 85 per cent stake in Chinese real estate company Logan Property Holdings. Above, one of Logan’s apartment complexes in the southern Chinese city of Shenzhen – where they are headquartered

According to the Forbes, she is worth $1.3billion which brings her in at number 1,284 of the 1,645 billionaires on the list. 

She is the 37th richest person on the Hing Kong list. 

But the world’s youngest billionaire remains mostly a mystery besides the fact that she graduated with an economics and finance degree from the University of London and is unmarried. 

According to the company’s prospectus, Kei’s full name is Kei Perenna Hoi Ting, but she has also gone by Ji Peili in the past. 

The Chinese elite are famous for going by other names in order to keep their wealth private. 

She is currently a non-executive director at the Shenzhen, China-based company which made 6.6billion yuan in 2012. 

Gates held the title of ‘richest man in the world’ for 15 out of the past 20 years, but he was succeeded- briefly- by Mexican telecommunications magnate Carlos Slim Helu for the past four years.

Gates, who now spends most of his time in philanthropy, earned his spot back as his net worth increased by $9billion to $76billion after Microsoft’s stock had a promising year, putting him ahead of Slim Helu who came in at $72billion.

Facebook founder Mark Zuckerberg made the most money in the world over the past 12 months, according to the Forbes report, and his net worth nearly doubled, going from 2013’s estimate of $15.2billion to $28.5billion as a result of the social network’s increasing share price.