Trailer

0:00This BBC podcast is supported by ads outside the UK.

0:30Things await you at Whole Foods Market. Ever invest in something that seemed incredible at first, but didn't live up to the hype? Like those$5 roses at a gas station, or a second-hand piece of technology that breaks in the first 10 minutes? Marketers know that feeling. We optimize for the numbers that look great, impressions, reach, and reacts. But when they don't show revenue, well, that's a not-so-great conversation with the CFO. LinkedIn has a word for that. Bull spend. Now you can invest in what looks good to your CFO. LinkedIn ads generates the highest ROAS of all major ad networks. You'll reach the right buyers because you can target by company, industry, job title, and more.

1:15So cut the bull spend. Advertise on LinkedIn, the network that works for you. Spend$250 on your first campaign on LinkedIn ads and get a 250 credit for the next one. Just go to linkedin.com slash broadcast. That's linkedin.com slash broadcast. Terms and conditions apply.

1:41We are back. For those new to good, bad billionaire, what is the podcast? Well, we're going to find out how some of the wealthiest people on the planet made their money. We take them from zero to their first million, then from a million onto a billion. My name is Zing Singh. I'm a journalist, author and podcaster. And I'm Simon Jack. I'm the BBC's business editor. And why do we do this? Well, how people got really rich is interesting in itself. And for my money, it also holds up a bit of a mirror to us. Nobody gets that rich without providing something that we need, want or enjoy. So it tells us something about the societies in which we live.

2:17And there are also some people who say that billionaires are some of the most inspiring people on the planet, that they show the limits of human endeavour, that they're creating new exciting technologies, things that people can buy, consume and enjoy. And other people say they're the living manifestation of inequality. It's a pretty weird way to run a planet when you could have a bus full of people who've got more combined wealth than the poorest half of the world's population. That's right. If you combine the wealth of every single billionaire on the planet, it stands at over$20 trillion. And there are also more billionaires than ever before.

2:49In 2026, there are a record 3 ,428 of them, according to Forbes. So that means over the last 12 months or so, there's been more than one new billionaire minted every single day. So we could be doing this for the rest of our lives. Exactly. Billionaires are also getting younger. There are 35 billionaires under the age of 30. Don't you just hate them? And we're going to cover a few, including viral stars Mr. Beast and Carby LeMay. But it's still very much a boys club because only 14 % of all billionaires are women. And of those 3 ,000 plus billionaires, there are only 122 self-made female billionaires.

3:26Three quarters of them inherited their money. And in this season, we'll cover the newest, youngest self-made female billionaire, a woman whose company might change the world forever. Plus, we're going to cover some fascinating billionaires you've probably never heard of, the Beef Brothers of Brazil and the old godmother of Chinese chilli sauce. And there are more celebrity billionaires than ever. We're going to cover a few names you may have heard of. Sports star Cristiano Ronaldo, anyone? And Roger Federer? As well as musicians that you may have heard of, like Paul McCartney. And we kick it all off next week with Beyonce.

3:57Yep, new episodes will be released every Monday. Listen wherever you get your BBC podcasts. Listen first on BBC Sounds.

4:13$5 roses at a gas station or a second-hand piece of technology that breaks in the first 10 minutes? Marketers know that feeling. We optimize for the numbers that look great, impressions, reach, and reacts. But when they don't show revenue, well, that's a not-so-great conversation with the CFO. LinkedIn has a word for that. Bull spend. Now you can invest in what looks good to your CFO. LinkedIn ads generates the highest ROAS of all major ad networks. You'll reach the right buyers because you can target by company, industry, job title and more. So cut the bull spend. Advertise on LinkedIn, the network that works for you.

4:57Spend$250 on your first campaign on LinkedIn ads and get a 250 credit for the next one. Just go to linkedin.com slash broadcast. That's linkedin.com slash broadcast. Terms and conditions apply.