Well surprise, surprise, it’s Warren Buffett. With a net worth of around $62 billion dollars, Buffet has edged-out Bill Gates, who has claimed the title of wealthiest man alive for the past 14 years. As I’m sure he knew, it was only a matter of time. You could credit his wealth to the success of Berkshire Hathaway (NYSE:BRK.A) but you’d be placing the cart before the horse. Warren Buffett got to where he is today by being the most thrifty investor in the world, and Berkshire Hathaway is his personal project. In other tales of fortunes amassed, telecom industry baron Carlos Slim Helú’s personal fortune rose by $11 billion dollars, for a total of around $60 billion, in 2007. Buffett’s and Helú’s methodologies provide quite an interesting contrast, to say the least.