Tuesday, December 28, 2010

Money is Funny

I had reason to find out who the richest women in the world are. Truly amazing what sums these women have. But I really did a double take when the compiler of one such list was speaking somewhat disparagingly of Queen Elizabeth's monetary worth. As he put it, "the Queen is worth only a paltry $7.4 billion in American dollars." Paltry?!!! Did you ever imagine living in a world where $7.4 billion dollars would be a paltry sum?

Let's see, $7.4 billion invested at even only 1% interest would give interest income of "only" $74 million a year. Now imagine that at 4% or 8% or 10%. Okay, if this is a paltry income then please, please, please may I be zocheh to this kind of paltriness. Truly, one woman's poison is another woman's meat.

Please note: before some finance-type of person hastens to tell me that the Queen's worth is not strictly one based on money but also on tangible items such as real estate and other possessions, I already know that. And if her monetary holdings would be only 1/10 her worth? And I would only be getting a couple of million dollars a year in interest? Anyone here who would seriously turn down that kind of money and consider themselves poor for getting "only" that amount? Didn't think so.

2 comments:

Tova said...

Sign me up--I want to be as poor as the queen.

Miami Al said...

Keep in mind that her station in life requires extensive expenses. While I'm sure that the government picks up much of the costs of her palaces and service as head of state, when she has a dinner party, it's a state dinner...

That said, given how many crown holdings have been nationalized, she isn't as wealthy as others.

For my daughters obsessed with Disney Princesses, the idea that a queen isn't the richest woman in the country would be quite sad.