Carlos Slim Net Worth

Carlos Slim has an estimated net worth of $120 billion, according to Forbes Real-Time Billionaires, Carlos Slim profile (figures as of October 20, 2026). That is up from $64 billion in 2019.

Carlos Slim is a Mexican business owner and investor whose fortune is centered on telecom. He and his family control América Móvil, the biggest mobile telecom company in Latin America. Slim also owns major interests through Grupo Carso, a large conglomerate with holdings across the Mexican economy. Before business became his full-time path, he taught algebra at UNAM. His father also pushed careful recordkeeping, and Slim kept a ledger of his spending from a young age.

After graduating in 1961, Slim began as a stock trader in Mexico. By 1965, he had built enough profit to start Inversora Bursátil, and in 1966 he established Inmuebles Carso. During the 1970s and 1980s, he expanded into construction, mining, retail, finance, tobacco, hotels, chemicals, tires, and more. His biggest turn came in 1990, when he joined foreign telecom partners to buy a stake in Telmex, Mexico’s only phone company, now part of América Móvil.

How Carlos Slim makes money

The core of Slim’s wealth comes from telecommunications. His family controls América Móvil, which operates across Latin America, and Telmex later became part of that business. That deal traces back to 1990, when Slim teamed with France Télécom and Southwestern Bell to buy into Telmex as Mexico privatized the company. Telecom is still the main engine of his fortune, even though his business empire reaches far beyond one industry.

Slim also built wealth by buying and holding businesses in many parts of the Mexican economy. Through Grupo Carso, his family owns 76% of one of Latin America’s largest conglomerates. Forbes notes that he also has stakes in construction, consumer goods, mining, and real estate companies. Earlier in his career, he bought into companies tied to copper, tires, hotels, insurance, retail, and tobacco. He previously held a 17% stake in The New York Times.

Forbes net worth timeline

Forbes has tracked big swings in Slim’s fortune over time. Its World’s Billionaires List estimated him at $64 billion in 2019, then $52.1 billion in 2020, before rising to $62.8 billion in 2021. The estimate climbed further to $81.2 billion in 2022 and $93 billion in 2023. Those moves fit a business portfolio led by telecom, but supported by holdings in several other industries through Grupo Carso and other investments.

The upward move continued when Forbes put Slim at $102 billion in 2024. Its 2025 list then estimated $82.5 billion, before the 2026 list rose to $125 billion. As of October 20, 2026, Forbes’ real-time billionaires tracker put him at $120 billion. That estimate reflects a fortune still anchored in América Móvil and Telmex, along with other stakes in construction, consumer goods, mining, and real estate.