Billionaire Brits feel the pinch as they drop off Forbes rich list

The number of British billionaires on the Forbes rich list has fallen to 50, down three from last year.

Bill Gates topped the global list for the 17th time, with a current net worth of 75 billion US dollars (£53.7 billion).

Featuring some 57 places below him are the top-ranked Brits, the Hinduja brothers with a net worth of 14.5 billion US dollars (£10.3 billion).

Last years British newcomers - Speedo brand owner Stephen Rubin, Monster energy drinks boss Hilton Schlosberg and The Range homewear owner Chris Dawson - drop off the list of 1,810 billionaires.

Other Brits who do feature on this year's list are David and Simon Reuben and James Dyson.

Theatre producer Cameron Mackintosh, who is behind West End shows such as Mary Poppins and Les Miserables, is a new British entry, ranking at number 1476, with a net worth of 1.2 billion US dollars (£859.9 million)

The magazine said it calculated each person's wealth based on a snapshot of when stock prices and exchange rates were locked in on February 12.

The 1,810 billionaires on the list of the world's richest people have an aggregate net worth of 6.48 billion US dollars (£4.6 trillion), down from 7.05 trillion US dollars (£5.05 trillion).

A total of 21 people dropped out of the rankings, while 29 died.

The biggest loser was number four on the list - Mexican telecoms giant Carlos Slim Helu - who saw his fortune drop from 77.1 billion US dollars (£55.2 billion) to 50 billion US dollars (£35.8 billion).

Notable newcomers included the world's youngest billionaires, Alexandra Andresen, 19, and her sister Katharina Andresen, 20, both at number 1476, from Norway.