Top Shop boss drops out of top tier of super-rich after slew of allegations
Sir Philip Green is estimated to have lost his billionaire status, with the retail tycoon’s fortune believed to have halved in a year because of a pension black hole in his empire.
The Sunday Times Rich List has his fortune free-falling £1.05 billion in a year to £950 million.
But the plummet still places Sir Philip and wife Tina at 156th on the list, down from joint 66 th some 12 months earlier.
The Arcadia Group – which includes Topshop, Burton and Dorothy Perkins – was valued as worthless in this year’s list as the company copes with a pension debt which hit £565 million.
The couple’ s stake in the company was last year valued at £750 million, while the compilers also removed £300 million from their worth to allow the shoring up of the deficit.
With his wealth peaking at almost £5 billion in 2007, it is the first time in 17 years that Sir Philip has not been listed as a billionaire.
Robert Watts, who compiled the list, said he struggles to envisage the tycoon returning to the “upper echelons”.
“Sir Philip Green may have clung on to his knighthood, but we can no longer justify his status as one of the UK’S billionaires,” Mr Watts said.
“This is the first time since 2002 he has not been in that top tier of the UK’S super rich individuals.”
The devaluation comes after sustained criticism against Sir Philip. He was lambasted over the collapse of BHS, affecting 11,000 jobs and 19,000 pension holders.
Sir Philip has also faced a slew of allegations, including groping a female executive. The Croydon-born entrepreneur denied his behaviour was criminal.
Elsewhere in the rich list, Sir James Dyson reached his highest ever position as he prepares to move Dyson’s head office from Wiltshire to Singapore.
TheBrexi t-backing bu sinessman climbed seven places to become the fifth richest person in the UK, with his wealth estimated at £12.6 billion.
Leading the way are the Hinduja brothers Sri and Gopi, the magnates who were said to have amassed a £22 billion fortune, more than £3 billion ahead of David and Simon Reuben.
In third is Sir Jim Ratcliffe, the boss of petrochemicals firm Ineos who fell from first place after a reported £2.9 billion drop to £18.15 billion.
The Equality Trust pledged to write to the 1,000 individuals and families included in the list calling for them to support higher taxes in “a nation of Ferraris and food banks”.
newsdeskts@scotsman.com