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Abdullah bin Abdulaziz Al Saud was King of Saudi Arabia and Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques from 2005 until his death in 2015. He ascended to the throne last August 1, 2005, after his half-brother, King Fahd, died. He had a net worth of $18 billion.
Like Fahd, Abdullah was one of Ibn Saud's many sons. Ibn was the founder of modern Saudi Arabia, and he held lots of prominent political posts throughout his life. His first public office was being the mayor of Mecca in 1961. The next year, he became the appointed commander of the Saudi Arabian National Guard. He held this post when he became king. He also became the deputy defense minister and named as the crown prince after Fahd took the throne in 1982. When King Fahd suffered a severe stroke in 1995, Abdullah became Saudi Arabia's de facto ruler for a decade.
He maintained close relations with the United States and the United Kingdom and bought billions of defense equipment from them. He allowed the women to vote for municipal councils and compete in the Olympics. Abdullah maintained his status quo even if there were waves of protest in the kingdom during Arab Spring. Last November 2013, a BBC report claimed that Saudi Arabia might get nuclear weapons from Pakistan because of their close relations.
The King was able to outlive his two crown princes, so he named Salman bin Abdulaziz Al Saud, the 76-year-old defense minister, as crown prince. There were various reports that Abdullah married up to thirty times and had more than 35 children. His fortune is at $18 billion which makes him the third wealthiest head of state in the world. He died on January 23, 2015, at the age of 90. It happened after he got hospitalized for three weeks for pneumonia. His half-brother, Salman of Saudi Arabia, succeeded him as king.
Earnings & Financial Data
Date |
Category |
Description |
Amount |
---|---|---|---|
2017 |
Asset |
Purchase value of the artwork Salvator Mundi which is reportedly Leonardo da Vinci's last painting |
$450,000,000 |
2015 |
Earning Turned Donation |
Value of the gifts given to the family of President Obama in the year 2015 |
$1,300,000 |
2011 |
Earning Turned Donation |
Amount spent for the creation of a programme for new spending including new jobless benefits, education and housing subsidies, debt write-offs, and a new sports channel |
$37,000,000,000 |
2011 |
Earning Turned Donation |
Amount spent to purchase gifts and handouts intended to placate Saudis of modest means and insulate the world’s biggest oil exporter from the wave of protest sweeping the Arab world |
$37,000,000,000 |
2010 |
Earning Turned Donation |
Amount spent for the King Abdullah bin Abdulaziz Project for Zamzam Water in Makkah in order to improve the water supply in the area |
$187,120,000 |
2008 |
Earning Turned Donation |
Donation to the United Nations World Food Programme |
$500,000,000 |
2008 |
Asset |
Current value of 22 investment projects for the improvement of the King Abdullah Economic City |
$34,750,000,000 |
2008 |
Earning Turned Donation |
Donation to the endowment fund of the King Abdullah University of Science and Technology |
$10,000,000,000 |
2008 |
Earning Turned Donation |
Value of cash and relief materials donated for the 2008 Sichuan earthquake in China |
$60,000,000 |
2005 |
Asset |
Current value of his asset the King Abdullah Economic City |
$100,240,000 |
2005 |
Earning Turned Donation |
Donation to furnish the rebuilding of a New Orleans high school after the destruction of Hurricane Katrina |
$300,000 |