• German Shepherd Gunther VI chases a tennis ball thrown by handler Stacey Marino outside a house owned by pop star Madonna on November 15, 2021, in Miami. Gunther VI is estimated to have a net worth of about $500 million, thanks to inheritance as well as investments. AP Photo
    German Shepherd Gunther VI chases a tennis ball thrown by handler Stacey Marino outside a house owned by pop star Madonna on November 15, 2021, in Miami. Gunther VI is estimated to have a net worth of about $500 million, thanks to inheritance as well as investments. AP Photo
  • Nala the Cat, a Siamese-tabby mix, has a reported wealth of $100m and 4.3 million Instagram followers. Getty Images via AFP
    Nala the Cat, a Siamese-tabby mix, has a reported wealth of $100m and 4.3 million Instagram followers. Getty Images via AFP
  • Singer Taylor Swift with her cat Scottish fold Olivia Benson, which has an estimated net worth of $97m. Raymond Hall / GC Images
    Singer Taylor Swift with her cat Scottish fold Olivia Benson, which has an estimated net worth of $97m. Raymond Hall / GC Images
  • Oprah Winfrey walking her dogs. Each has its own trust fund and as a collective are set to inherit $30m when Oprah dies. Photo: Instagram / @oprah
    Oprah Winfrey walking her dogs. Each has its own trust fund and as a collective are set to inherit $30m when Oprah dies. Photo: Instagram / @oprah
  • Jiffpom has 9.8 million followers on Instagram. The tiny Pomeranian is worth $25m and rakes in $32,906 per Instagram post. Getty Images via AFP
    Jiffpom has 9.8 million followers on Instagram. The tiny Pomeranian is worth $25m and rakes in $32,906 per Instagram post. Getty Images via AFP
  • Choupette Lagerfeld has 233,000 Instagram followers and a $13m fortune. Photo: Instagram / @choupetteofficiel
    Choupette Lagerfeld has 233,000 Instagram followers and a $13m fortune. Photo: Instagram / @choupetteofficiel
  • The late actress and comedienne Betty White's golden retriever Pontiac has a $5m fortune. Photo: Instagram / @bettymwhite
    The late actress and comedienne Betty White's golden retriever Pontiac has a $5m fortune. Photo: Instagram / @bettymwhite
  • Social media influencer Doug the Pug has an estimated net worth of $1.5m. Getty Images via AFP
    Social media influencer Doug the Pug has an estimated net worth of $1.5m. Getty Images via AFP
  • YouTube star Tucker Budzyn, a golden retriever, has a net worth of $1.5m. Photo: Instagram / @tuckerbudzyn
    YouTube star Tucker Budzyn, a golden retriever, has a net worth of $1.5m. Photo: Instagram / @tuckerbudzyn
  • Marutaro, the shiba inu from Japan with 2.2 million Instagram followers, has a fortune of $1.5m. AP Photo
    Marutaro, the shiba inu from Japan with 2.2 million Instagram followers, has a fortune of $1.5m. AP Photo

The top 10 richest pets in the world revealed: which one has a net worth of $500 million?


Evelyn Lau
  • English
  • Arabic

Choupette, Doug the Pug and Nala Cat are some of the world’s most famous pets but which one reigns supreme when it comes to wealth?

A list created by the blog All About Cats using social data and Instagram earnings has now revealed the highest-earning and most influential pets. So, who tops the list?

Gunther VI, a German shepherd owned by The Gunther Corporation, is estimated to have a worth of about $500 million, thanks to inheritance as well as investments.

The pampered pooch inherited his fortune from German Countess Karlotta Leibenstein, who died in 1992 and left $80m to his grandfather, Gunther III. Over the years, that money has been used for investments around the world, resulting in the amassed fortune.

Next on the list is Nala Cat, with a reported wealth of $100m. The Siamese-tabby mix, who is slightly cross-eyed, has found fame on Instagram and currently has 4.3 million followers. According to CNN, her owners said that sponsored content deals with brands on the platform start at $8,000, while estimates suggest the feline makes $14,419 per post.

She is followed by Olivia Benson, the best friend and companion of pop star Taylor Swift. The Scottish fold has made cameo appearances in music videos as well as on Swift’s social media. The cat has an estimated net worth of $97m.

At number four are Sadie, Sunny, Lauren, Layla, and Luke, Oprah Winfrey’s pet dogs, each of whom has their own trust fund and as a collective are set to inherit $30m when Oprah dies.

Next up is Jiffpom, who is also the most influential pet, with 9.8 million followers on Instagram. The tiny Pomeranian is worth $25m and rakes in $32,906 per Instagram post. He has two Guinness World Records and also appeared in Katy Perry’s music video for Dark Horse.

Rounding out the top 10 includes Karl Lagerfeld's famed companion and inspiration Choupette ($13m), Betty White's golden retriever Pontiac ($5m), influencer Doug the Pug ($1.5m), who reportedly makes $12,890 per Instagram post, YouTube star Tucker Budzyn ($1.5m), who has 4.38 million subscribers on the platform, and Marutaro ($1.5m), the shiba inu from Japan with 2.2 million Instagram followers.

The top 10 richest pets in the world

  1. Gunther VI, $500m
  2. Nala Cat, $100m
  3. Olivia Benson, $97m
  4. Sadie, Sunny, Lauren, Layla and Luke, $30m
  5. Jiffpom, $25m
  6. Choupette, $13m
  7. Pontiac, $5m
  8. Doug the Pug, $1.5m
  9. Tucker Budzyn, $1.5m
  10. Marutaro, $1.5m
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Mercer, the investment consulting arm of US services company Marsh & McLennan, expects its wealth division to at least double its assets under management (AUM) in the Middle East as wealth in the region continues to grow despite economic headwinds, a company official said.

Mercer Wealth, which globally has $160 billion in AUM, plans to boost its AUM in the region to $2-$3bn in the next 2-3 years from the present $1bn, said Yasir AbuShaban, a Dubai-based principal with Mercer Wealth.

Within the next two to three years, we are looking at reaching $2 to $3 billion as a conservative estimate and we do see an opportunity to do so,” said Mr AbuShaban.

Mercer does not directly make investments, but allocates clients’ money they have discretion to, to professional asset managers. They also provide advice to clients.

“We have buying power. We can negotiate on their (client’s) behalf with asset managers to provide them lower fees than they otherwise would have to get on their own,” he added.

Mercer Wealth’s clients include sovereign wealth funds, family offices, and insurance companies among others.

From its office in Dubai, Mercer also looks after Africa, India and Turkey, where they also see opportunity for growth.

Wealth creation in Middle East and Africa (MEA) grew 8.5 per cent to $8.1 trillion last year from $7.5tn in 2015, higher than last year’s global average of 6 per cent and the second-highest growth in a region after Asia-Pacific which grew 9.9 per cent, according to consultancy Boston Consulting Group (BCG). In the region, where wealth grew just 1.9 per cent in 2015 compared with 2014, a pickup in oil prices has helped in wealth generation.

BCG is forecasting MEA wealth will rise to $12tn by 2021, growing at an annual average of 8 per cent.

Drivers of wealth generation in the region will be split evenly between new wealth creation and growth of performance of existing assets, according to BCG.

Another general trend in the region is clients’ looking for a comprehensive approach to investing, according to Mr AbuShaban.

“Institutional investors or some of the families are seeing a slowdown in the available capital they have to invest and in that sense they are looking at optimizing the way they manage their portfolios and making sure they are not investing haphazardly and different parts of their investment are working together,” said Mr AbuShaban.

Some clients also have a higher appetite for risk, given the low interest-rate environment that does not provide enough yield for some institutional investors. These clients are keen to invest in illiquid assets, such as private equity and infrastructure.

“What we have seen is a desire for higher returns in what has been a low-return environment specifically in various fixed income or bonds,” he said.

“In this environment, we have seen a de facto increase in the risk that clients are taking in things like illiquid investments, private equity investments, infrastructure and private debt, those kind of investments were higher illiquidity results in incrementally higher returns.”

The Abu Dhabi Investment Authority, one of the largest sovereign wealth funds, said in its 2016 report that has gradually increased its exposure in direct private equity and private credit transactions, mainly in Asian markets and especially in China and India. The authority’s private equity department focused on structured equities owing to “their defensive characteristics.”

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Keep it fun and engaging

Stuart Ritchie, director of wealth advice at AES International, says children cannot learn something overnight, so it helps to have a fun routine that keeps them engaged and interested.

“I explain to my daughter that the money I draw from an ATM or the money on my bank card doesn’t just magically appear – it’s money I have earned from my job. I show her how this works by giving her little chores around the house so she can earn pocket money,” says Mr Ritchie.

His daughter is allowed to spend half of her pocket money, while the other half goes into a bank account. When this money hits a certain milestone, Mr Ritchie rewards his daughter with a small lump sum.

He also recommends books that teach the importance of money management for children, such as The Squirrel Manifesto by Ric Edelman and Jean Edelman.

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Updated: March 01, 2022, 10:03 AM