They are worth more than a staggering £13bn between them
The Sunday Times Wales Rich List,
The richest people in Wales have been revealed. They include a couple behind an opticians chain, the founders of a supermarket, and a husband and wife who have topped the list on a number of occasions, according to this year’s edition of The Sunday Times Rich List, which has now been published online.
The list, which is updated annually, ranks the 350 richest people in the UK and has been printed in a special edition of The Sunday Times Magazine since 1989. This year’s list of individuals and families have a combined wealth of £783.5bn – more than the the annual GDP of Belgium, Sweden, and Israel.
The top three richest individuals and families in Wales has remained the same for the last four editions of the list.
The survey is based on identifiable wealth including land, property, other assets such as art and racehorses, or significant shares in publicly-quoted companies. It excludes bank accounts, which the paper has no access to.
The 2026 special edition of The Sunday Times Magazine reveals the largest fall in the billionaire count in the guide’s 38-year history. The minimum entry level to get on the list this year has dipped to £340m – another indicator of a subdued year.
Famous figures to make the cut include Sir Elton John, Andrew Lloyd-Webber, Sir Mick Jagger, Keith Richards, JK Rowling, Charlotte Tilbury, and Sir Lewis Hamilton. Always keep on top of the latest Welsh news with our newsletter.
Topping the list once again for the 10 richest individuals or families in Wales – who are worth in excess of a staggering £13bn between them – are venture capitalist Sir Michael Moritz and his novelist wife Harriet Heyman. Moritz’s wealth has grown by more than £1bn since last year taking his worth to more than £5.4bn.
Some of the other wealthiest entries on the list have lost wealth since the last list. Only one Welsh person made the list for the richest people under under 40, founder and CEO of Net World Sports, Alex Lovén, who has an estimated wealth of £263m.
These are Wales’ 10 wealthiest individuals or families according to The Sunday Times Rich List 2026.
1. Sir Michael Moritz and Harriet Heyman
Sir Michael Moritz(Image: Getty Images)
Source of wealth: Venture capitalist and philanthropist
2026 wealth: £5.481bn
Yearly difference: Up £1.046bn
Cardiff-born Sir Michael Moritz, 71, is a former journalist who joined US investment house Sequoia Capital in 1986 and set up his own charitable foundation, Crankstart. He became a billionaire by making early investments into the likes of Google, PayPal, WhatsApp, YouTube, and a host of other tech giants before any other big names.
After stepping down from being in charge of Sequoia Capital in 2012 for health reasons Sir Michael and his American author wife Harriet Heyman, whom he shares his billions with, set up Crankstart to support students from low-income families.
Last year he announced he had applied for a German passport as an “insurance policy” against antisemitism. He believes the country his parents fled does a better job of teaching children about the horrors of the Holocaust.
2. Simon Nixon
Simon Nixon(Image: Western Mail)
Source of wealth: Tech entrepreneur (MoneySuperMarket)
2026 wealth: £2.05bn
Yearly difference: Up £100m
In second place again this year is 58-year-old Simon Nixon, who was born in Lincolnshire but grew up in Flintshire. Many will have heard of his fortune making website, MoneySuperMarket, which he co-founded in 1993.
He eventually went on to sell his shares by 2016 and now has investments in Monzo. He also makes money from his holiday home website Simon Escapes where he rents out his personal collection of luxury homes around the world from Cornwall to Malibu.
3. Douglas and Dame Mary Perkins and family
Doug Perkins opening the new Specsavers Carmarthen(Image: Mike Walters)
Dame Mary Perkins
Source of wealth: Opticians (Specsavers)
2026 wealth: £1.409bn
Yearly difference: Down £130m
Douglas Perkins, 83, from Llanelli, and his wife Dame Mary Perkins, 82, started their billion-pound fortune from a ping-pong table in their spare bedroom where they created Specsavers. The pair came up with the idea of making a visit to the opticians like going to a shop rather than going to the doctor and turned the idea into a hugely profitable international business.
The company is now a global chain of opticians and made Perkins and his family billionaires.
4. Sir Terry Matthews
Sir Terry Matthews.(Image: John Myers)
Source of wealth: Telecoms tycoon
2026 wealth: £1.33bn
Yearly difference: Down £8m
Sir Terry Matthews was raised in Newbridge before earning a degree in electronics from Swansea University.
He began his journey as an entrepreneur in Canada where he started his telecoms equipment venture Mitel in 1973. He now also owns the Celtic Manor Resort in Newport.
Sir Terry is recorded as Wales’ first billionaire and was the richest man in Wales until 2012.
5. David Sullivan and family
David Sullivan.(Image: PA)
Source of wealth: Publisher
2025 wealth: £1.1bn
Yearly difference: Down £18m
Born in Cardiff, David Sullivan, 77, earned his millions by selling pornographic content,. By the late 1970s he ran half of the UK’s adult magazine market and 150 sex shops.
In 1982 he was convicted of living off immoral earnings and served 71 days in prison but he told the Standard in 2012 that he did not “feel embarrassed” by how he made his money.
Sullivan is currently the co-owner of West Ham United FC as well as operating an investment company, Conegate, which owns property in London.
6= Henry Engelhardt and Diane Briere de L’Isle
Henry Engelhardt and his wife Diane Briere de L’Isle.(Image: Richard Swingler)
Source of wealth: Insurance firm Admiral
2026 wealth: £935m
Yearly difference: Down £45m
The married couple are up from 7th in the list last year.
Chicago-born Henry Engelhardt moved to Cardiff in the 1990s to set up the insurance firm Admiral. In the 20 years before he stepped back in 2016 he reshaped the UK car insurance industry and built a fortune.
6= Steve Morgan
Steve Morgan.(Image: Redrow/PA)
Source of wealth: Housebuilder Redrow
2026 wealth: £935m
Yearly difference: Down £53m
Steve Morgan founded housebuilder Redrow in 1974 at the age of 21. It grew to be a FTSE 250 company and one of the UK’s most successful homebuilders. Morgan stepped down as chairman of Redrow in 2019.
In 2001 he founded the Steve Morgan Foundation to which he has donated more than £300m and which has provided support to more than 650 charities.
In 1992 Morgan received an OBE for Services to the construction industry and in 2016 he received a CBE for Philanthropic Services.
8. Dai and Richard Walters
Dai Walters.(Image: MediaWales)
Source of wealth: Construction tycoons (Walters)
2026 wealth: £441m
Yearly difference: Up £23m
Dai Walters’ fortune is entirely self-made having started out as an apprentice labourer at an opencast site in south Wales in the 1970s. The Walters Group website describes how after work as a labourer, greengrocer, and tree planter at 20 years old he took a job as an apprentice fitter at the Wimpey-operated Maesgwyn opencast coal mine.
It wasn’t until 1982, after 17 years working on sites across Wales, that Walters struck out on his own. After success buying plant machinery and hiring it out to mining companies initially in south Wales the Walters Group was established to add earthmoving and civil engineering services to its portfolio and before long was becoming involved in some major construction projects
His son Richard previously ran Caerphilly-based Celtic Energy.
9. Sir Malcolm and Lord Walker
Sir Malcolm Walker.(Image: IAN COOPER/NORTH WALES LIVE)
Source of wealth: Frozen food retailers (Iceland)
2026 wealth: £424m
Yearly difference: Re-entry
Sir Malcolm Walker founded the supermarket chain in 1970 as a side business alongside his job working at Woolworths. The founder was fired for having his own company which was the starting point of Iceland becoming the giant it is today.
Growing up in Yorkshire the supermarket boss now lives in Flintshire.
Sir Malcolm’s son Lord Richard of Broxton, 45, joined the company in 2012 as a shelf-stacker and cashier working his way up the ladder to becoming becoming executive chairman in January 2023.
10. David and Heather Stevens
David Stevens.(Image: South Wales Echo)
Source of wealth: Insurers (Admiral)
2026 wealth: £340m
Yearly difference: Re-entry
This couple are the second to find themselves on the due to their involvement in establishing insurance firm Admiral. David and Heather Stevens were part of the small team which launched the insurance group in 1993 in Cardiff.
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