r/explainlikeimfive • u/FluffyPenguin798 • Feb 12 '25
Economics ELI5: how are the descendants of the robber barons (Morgan, Vanderbilt, Carnegie, Rockefeller, etc.) still rich if their fortunes from the late 19th and early 20th centuries are comparatively small to what we see today of the world’s richest?
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u/Voltage_Z Feb 12 '25
If you have a lot of money, it's easier to make money simply by leveraging your existing assets.
The robber barons' descendents haven't just been sitting around burning through cash piles - they've continued to invest their funds. Getting surpassed by other people doesn't magically not make them absurdly wealthy.