Forbes Middle East inaugurated a list of 15 billionaire Arab families.
These billionaires have provided jobs and played key roles in the development of their countries.
According to a 2012 Harvard Business Review study, during an economic downturn, they outperformed non-family businesses.
The authors, Nicolas Kachaner, George Stalk, Jr., and Alain Bloch said, “They forgo the excess returns available during good times in order to increase their odds of survival during bad times.”
Many of the families on the list may not be household names (and many prefer to keep it that way), but certain brands are symbolic of certain family name.
If you drive a Toyota in Saudi Arabia, it comes from the Jameel family, one of the biggest Toyota dealers in the world.
Or, the cup of Starbucks coffee you sip in Istanbul or Amman is courtesy of the Alshaya family.
In fact, nine out of the 15 families have made a fortune owning licensing rights to foreign brands, mostly American, reported Forbes Middle East.
Here are the list of richest 15 families in Arab World
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