Egypt's wealthiest family loses ground in Arab Business rich list

The Sawiris, Egypt's biggest business family, have declined in rankings on Arab Business magazine's annual list of the Arab world's wealthiest. The Heikel brothers make their first-ever entry

he Sawiris, Egypt's biggest business family, have declined in rankings on Arab Business magazine's annual list of the Arab world's wealthiest, falling from the 24^th place in 2009, to the 28^th in 2010.
Though the family's fortune has slightly increased, rising from $3.3 billion in 2009 to $3.5 billion in 2010, their position in the list has declined, partly due to the increase in the overall wealth of Arab tycoons, with Prince Alwaleed bin Talal, this year's richest man, adding more than $2 billion to his own wealth, which grew from $18 billion to $20.4 billion in 2010.
The world's 50 richest Arabs are worth a total of just over $245 billion, an 18 per cent increase to last year's figures, the magazine revealed in its 2010 Arabian Business Rich List.
This year's Rich List has seen a record 24 new players, with the entry bar raised from $1.5 billion in 2009 to $1.7billion this year.
Of those 24, Saudi Arabia’s Bugshan family was the highest-ranked, seizing the eighth place with a total of $7 billion.

The second-highest ranked newcomer was the Al Juffali family – also from Saudi Arabia – which has built one of the biggest industrial conglomerates in the region. The family took up the creditable 11^th place, after an exceptional year.
Other new entries included Tarek Abdulla Al Qahtani, the Naghi Family, Abdullah Al Rushaid and Qatari business magnate Omar Hamad Almana.
Elsewhere in the Arab world, Syria’s biggest Formula One fan Mansour Ojjey made it to 42^nd place, while Lebanon's diamond supremo Robert Mouawad came in at 43. Both men are on the list for the first time.
Another new entry came in the form of Egypt’s Heikal brothers. Ahmed and Hassan Heikal came in at 48^th and 49^th with an estimated wealth of $1.7 billion each. They are the sons of Hassanein Heikal, the Nasserist political writer.
Ahmad is the chairman of Citadel, a leading private equity company in the Middle East, while Hassan is the vice chairman and CEO of EFG Hermes, the biggest investment bank in Egypt.
Another Egyptian, Shafiq Gabr, a big car trader, made the list right above them, with a $2.1 billion.