How many billionaires have ties to Charlotte? What to know about the local super rich

Mary Ramsey
·2 min read

Plenty of people fantasize about what they’d do if they had billions of dollars at their disposal, but for some North Carolina residents, that’s a reality.

Multiple people with associations to the state made the 2023 edition of Forbes’ “Richest People In The World” list with estimated net worths in the billions.

And some who don’t officially live in North Carolina but do plenty of high-profile business in the state also made the Forbes list.

Here’s what to know about the richest people in North Carolina, plus more billionaires with strong connections to the Charlotte area:

North Carolina billionaires

James Goodnight, of Cary, is the richest person in North Carolina, per Forbes.

The 80-year-old co-founder and CEO of the software company SAS is the 305th richest person in the world, according to Forbes, with a net worth of $7.4 billion.

Goodnight’s co-founder, John Sall, also made the 2023 Forbes list. The Cary resident has a $3.7 billion net worth, making him the 766th richest person in the world.

Tim Sweeney, co-founder and CEO of the Cary-based game development company Epic Games, came in at 580th on the richest persons list, with a net worth of $4.7 billion.

And the Greensboro-based real estate mogul Roy Carroll, with a net worth of $2.9 billion, also made the Forbes list at 1,027th.

Billionaires with Charlotte connections

In addition to North Carolina residents with billions, some with strong ties to Charlotte also made Forbes’ 2023 richest persons list.

Carolina Panthers owner David Tepper, who is officially a resident of Florida, clocked in at 89th on the list with a net worth of $18.5 billion, per Forbes.

Former North Carolina basketball and NBA legend Michael Jordan, who made headlines last week for selling his majority stake in the Charlotte Hornets, has a $2 billion net worth, according to Forbes. That makes him the 1,516th richest person in the world.

And Dennis Gillings is considered a United Kingdom resident by Forbes, but the 1,434th richest person in the world founded his pharmaceutical company in North Carolina.