Branson fortune falls but Stelios on the rise

Branson and his family is worth an estimated £4.5 billion in this year’s The Sunday Times Rich List, which gives him a ranking of 29^th overall in the UK – down from 23^rd place a year ago.

Another airline entrepreneur, easyJet founder Sir Stelios Haji-Ioannou saw his family’s fortune increase by £1 billion year-on-year to reach £2.95 billion, thanks mainly to a rise in easyJet’s shares and dividends over the past year. Haji-Ioannou is ranked 48^th overall compared with 64^th in 2017.

Other travel industry figures to feature in the list (105^th) include the Matharu siblings, who own Grange Hotels in the UK, and have an estimated worth of £1.3 billion – up by £283 million year-on-year.

Saga founders Sir Roger and Peter De Haan now have a fortune of £890 million (158^th) while Bourne Leisure’s Peter Harris is worth £800 million (167^th).

Southall Travel’s Kuljinder Bahia ranked 300^th on the list with a value of £427 million, which was a rise of £7 million on 2017’s figure.

Other notable figures include Philip Meeson, executive chairman of Jet2.com’s owner Dart Group, who is worth an estimated £403 million – a valuation that has risen by £107 million over the past year.

Trailfinders’ founder Mike Gooley has seen his fortune rise by £20 million to reach to £380 million.