Anyone who follows international news can feel like they know everything about the billionaires of this planet. For several months now, not a day goes by without Elon Musk become news, Jeff BezosO Bill Gates and Bernard Arnault keep the press busy with their business moves, philanthropy, and their personal and family issues. That is why it seems very unlikely that there is even one mysterious billionaire who managed to live and die without anyone knowing the name and source of his huge money. wealth from. This secret was revealed by the dull figures of the tax authorities. USA with the daily financial transactions of the American government.

In particular, daily US state transactions show that on February 28, 2023, someone paid $7 billion in inheritance or gift taxes. It was the largest such tax paid since at least 2005.

Based on the US tax rate, a $7 billion payout means someone has bequeathed or bequeathed $17.5 billion of wealth. If this person took advantage of the various tax reliefs and methods known to financial advisers in the US, the net worth transferred could be up to $35 billion. Even considering the smaller amount, it seems that the owner of this property was one of them. 100 richest people of the world.

So who could this mysterious billionaire be? Berkeley University economist Gabriel Zucman told Quartz that it could be a very rich man who “escaped” from Forbes, a large donation, or late tax payments from a billionaire who died a few years ago. It can also be a divorce-related payment. However, Forbes’ list of billionaires who died in 2022 does not include a single American rich enough to make such a large payout. Well, the mystery gets more complicated.