As the rich and powerful from across the world start filling snow-clad lanes here, a new study said billionaires are 4,000 times more likely to hold any political office than ordinary people, and their wealth jumped three times faster in 2025 than the past-five-year average to a record high of USD 18.3 trillion. In Indian currency, it translates to more than Rs 1,660 lakh crore. Hours before the 56th World Economic Forum Annual Meeting 2026 begins in this Swiss ski resort town, rights group Oxfam International released its own annual inequality report to highlight that the ever-deepening wealth divide was also sparking dangerous political inequality. The meeting is being attended by over 3,000 global leaders, including more than 60 heads of state or government, as part of an over 400-strong political leadership presence in this small town in the Alps. Oxfam International said the billionaire wealth jumped by over 16 per cent in 2025, while it has increased by 81 per cent since ...