Billionaires have more money and political power than ever, Oxfam says

The global financial community’s annual report, Oxfam, expresses concern that billionaires are securing more control over politics, media, and social media than ever, while also expressing concern about rising inequality.

In a world where conflicts and protests are pervasive, the report released on Sunday also highlighted the growing divide between the haves and have-nots.

According to Oxfam’s analysis, billionaires’ combined wealth increased by $2.5 trillion in 2025, almost equal to the total wealth held by 4.1 billion people, or $2.5 trillion overall.

Elon Musk, the world’s richest person, had more than $ 30 trillion dollars for the first time in 2012, and there were more than 3 000 billionaires in the world for the first time last year.

The World Economic Forum’s annual meeting in Davos, Switzerland, which brings together close to 1, 000 of the world’s richest people with political leaders, along with a few invited activists each year, was the occasion of the release of the charity’s annual report on rising inequality.

A Spirit of Dialogue is the theme of the meeting this year. However, Oxfam claimed in its annual report that the superrich are increasingly in charge of all forms of media, including the more recent and traditional.

It gave examples of far-right billionaire Vincent Bollore owning France’s CNews, Amazon’s billionaire Jeff Bezos, buying The Washington Post, Musk acquiring Twitter/X, and Patrick Soon-Shiong acquiring the Los Angeles Times newspaper.

Amitabh Behar, executive director of Oxfam International, said the “extraordinary influence” the superrich have had on our politicians, economies, and media has “deepened inequality” and “manually trampled our efforts to combat poverty.”

Behar remarked that “governments should be listening to the needs of the people regarding things like quality healthcare, action on climate change, and tax fairness.”

According to a World Values Survey of 66 countries, almost half of respondents said the rich frequently buy elections in their country, while billionaires are 4, 000 times more likely than ordinary citizens.

The growing inequality between the rich and the poor is, according to Behar, creating a political deficit that is both dangerous and unsustainable.

“Lives are becoming incomprehensible and intolerable.”

In addition, according to Oxfam, 142 significant antigovernment protests occurred in 68 countries last year, which they claimed were typically met with violence.

Behar argued that “governments are making wrong decisions in their efforts to pander to the elite and protect wealth while suppressing people’s rights and anger over how many of their lives are becoming unaffordable and intolerable.”

The WEF estimates that “nearly 850 of the world’s top CEOs and chairpersons” will be present at this year’s Davos meeting along with political figures like US President Donald Trump, Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney, and Vice Premier He Lifeng, China’s vice president.

Oxfam is an aid organization that provides humanitarian assistance to nations all over the world in addition to its political advocacy.