World's Richest Woman Earns $12 Billion In 6 Months

Francoise Bettencourt Meyers, the world's richest woman, has increased her wealth this year by $12 billion to reach an estimated net worth of $87.8 billion.

The majority of her fortune stems from her 33-percent stake in L'Oreal, the world's largest cosmetics company. She inherited the stake when her mother, Liliane, died at age 94, according to a September 21, 2017 company statement. The French woman is also the chairwoman of the holding firm that holds the family’s stake.

L'Oreal, which also owns the Lancome and Garnier brands, realised $32 billion in revenue last year. The French cosmetic giant is known for offering cosmetic products that include mascara, lip gloss, foundation, nail polish, lipstick, face powder, eyeshadow, primer, blusher, and concealer, as well as, hair, skin, and body care products.

Stocks of the blue-chip Paris-listed company has been in a long-term upward trend since about a year ago and has gained 30% in value during the period. The company presently has a market valuation of about 208.93 billion Euros.

As of report time, the 68-year-old billionaire's estimated cash holdings stood at $5.7 billion, and her $87.2 billion net worth was worth 49.2 million troy ounces of gold or 1.15 billion barrels of crude oil.

She is the granddaughter of Eugene Schueller, the founder of L’Oreal, and was born in 1953 to Andre and Liliane Bettencourt. Francoise is the eleventh woman to hold the world’s richest woman title. 

The family is also serious about preserving its legacy as one of her two sons, Jean-Victor Meyers, replaced Liliane Bettencourt (grandmother), on L’Oréal’s board about 9 years ago.