Billionaires have more money and political power than ever, Oxfam says

Charity says superrich 4,000 times much apt to clasp governmental powerfulness than others, and ain each societal media companies, successful study released to coincide with the opening of the WEF’s yearly gathering successful Davos.

International assistance organisation Oxfam has released its yearly study connected rising inequality, expressing interest that billionaires are not lone wealthier than ever but are besides cementing their power implicit politics, media and societal media.

The study released connected Sunday besides underscored the widening chasm betwixt the haves and have-nots successful a satellite beset by conflicts and multiplying protests.

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According to Oxfam’s analysis, the corporate wealthiness of billionaires surged by $2.5 trillion successful 2025, astir equivalent to the full wealthiness held by the bottommost fractional of humanity, oregon 4.1 cardinal people.

Last twelvemonth was besides the archetypal clip that determination were much than 3,000 billionaires successful the world, and the archetypal clip that the world’s richest person, Elon Musk, had much than fractional a trillion dollars.

The charity’s yearly study connected rising inequality was released to coincide with the opening of the World Economic Forum’s yearly meeting successful Davos, Switzerland, a gathering which hosts adjacent to 1,000 of the world’s richest radical unneurotic with governmental leaders, alongside a fistful of invited activists each year.

The taxable of this year’s gathering is A Spirit of Dialogue. However, Oxfam argued successful its yearly study that the superrich are progressively controlling the means of communication, including some accepted and newer forms of media.

It cited examples of Jeff Bezos, the billionaire proprietor of Amazon, buying The Washington Post, Musk acquiring Twitter/X, Patrick Soon-Shiong taking implicit the Los Angeles Times paper and far-right billionaire Vincent Bollore owning France’s CNews.

“The outsized power that the superrich person implicit our politicians, economies and media has deepened inequality and led america acold disconnected way connected tackling poverty,” said Oxfam International Executive Director Amitabh Behar.

“Governments should beryllium listening to the needs of the radical connected things similar prime healthcare, enactment connected clime alteration and taxation fairness,” Behar added.

Oxfam besides estimated that billionaires are 4,000 times much apt to clasp governmental bureau than communal citizens and cited a World Values Survey of 66 countries, which recovered that astir fractional of each radical polled accidental the affluent often bargain elections successful their country.

“The widening spread betwixt the affluent and the remainder is astatine the aforesaid clip creating a governmental shortage that is highly unsafe and unsustainable,” Behar said.

Demonstrators face riot constabulary during a protestation against chronic cuts to energy and h2o successful Antananarivo, Madagascar, connected September 30, 2025 [Mamyrael/AP Photo]

‘Lives are becoming unaffordable and unbearable’

Oxfam besides noted that determination were 142 important antigovernment protests crossed 68 countries past year, which it said authorities typically met with violence.

“Governments are making incorrect choices to pander to the elite and support wealthiness portion repressing people’s rights and choler astatine however truthful galore of their lives are becoming unaffordable and unbearable,” Behar said.

According to the WEF, participants astatine this year’s Davos gathering see “nearly 850 of the world’s apical CEOs and chairpersons” alongside governmental leaders, including United States President Donald Trump, Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney, and Chinese Vice Premier He Lifeng.

In summation to its governmental advocacy, Oxfam is besides an assistance organisation, delivering humanitarian assistance successful countries astir the world.

The radical repeatedly sounded the alarm astir forced starvation successful Gaza nether Israel’s genocidal warfare and was 1 of 37 planetary assistance groups banned from the Palestinian enclave by Israel precocious past year.