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Playrix founders put mobile on top of The Sunday Times’ first ever Gaming Rich List

Playrix founders put mobile on top of The Sunday Times’ first ever Gaming Rich List

  • Both King and Tripledot place three big winners in the top 30
  • A quarter of the list are under 35, with the average age of the entries 45

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It’s that time of year again when The Sunday Times compiles its annual rich lists and this year – finally in recognition of the talent and wealth being generated through games in the UK – there’s even a games-focused table especially for all the devs, publishers and players who’ve made a mint.

And notably it’s a win for mobile as Russian-born brothers Igor and Dmitry Bukhman – the founders of Playrix, the makers of Homescapes and Gardenscapes – top the list with an estimated fortune of £12.5 billion.

Notably the pair also place a highly commendable 27th in the full unadulterated Sunday Times Rich List 2024 which includes stars of stage, screen, music, business and more.

Other notables on the gaming rich list include Debbie Bestwick, the former chief executive of Team17 at number 13 with £130 million, being just one of three women on the list.

And gamer Harry Lewis, aged 27, is the youngest person to appear on the list, regularly appearing online alongside KSI and the five fellow members of the Sidemen. 

Some Candy talking

The publisher that’s home to the biggest winners is King, whose success has put three of the top 30 in the limelight: Riccardo Zacconi, Mel Morris, and Sebastian Knutsson rank at numbers three, seven and nine respectively.

Similarly with three in the 30 are puzzle pros Tripledot who place Lior Shiff, Akin Babayigit and Eyal Chameides in at 5, 16 and 29 repectively.

“Making a fortune from video games may sound like living the dream. This Rich List tells the rags to riches stories of people who have done exactly that. ”

Robert Watts, The Sunday Times

And, in recognition of the vibrant nature of the industry, stats show that more than a quarter of the gamers and developers on the list are under 35, with the average age of the entries 45.

Robert Watts, the compiler of list said: “The UK gaming industry has become a Great British success story of recent years, creating thousands of jobs and contributing strongly to economic growth. 

“Our first Gaming Rich List shows who is earning well from hits such as Minecraft, Grand Theft Auto and Candy Crush. 

“Making a fortune while playing or creating video games may sound like living the dream to many young people. This Rich List tells the rags to riches stories of people who have done exactly that. 

Here’s that top 30 game developers and gamers in the UK 2024 list in full:

Rank 

Name

Estimated wealth

Expertise

Company 

Region

1

Igor and Dmitry Bukhman

£12.54bn

Games developer

Playrix

London

2

Herman Narula

£780m

Virtual worlds

Improbable 

London

3

Riccardo Zacconi

£410m

Games developer

King

London

4

Sam and Dan Houser

£350m

Games developer

Rockstar Games / Take-Two 

International

5

Lior Shiff

£347m

Games developer

Tripledot Studios

London

6

Garry Newman

£335m

Games developer

FacePunch Studios

West Midlands

7

Mel Morris

£312m

Games entrepreneur

King

London

8

Neil Taylor

£230m

Games retailer

Game

Northern Ireland

9

Sebastian Knutsson

£225m

Games developer

King

London

10

David Braben and Wendy Irvin-Braben

£175m

Games developer

Frontier Developments

East of England

11=

Patrick Burns

£150m

Games developer

4J Studios

Scotland

11=

Chris van der Kuyl

£150m

Games developer

4J Studios

Scotland

13

Debbie Bestwick

£130m

Games developer

Team17

Yorkshire and the Humber

14

Chris and Jason Kingsley

£120m

Games developer

Rebellion Developments

South East

15

Paul Wedgwood

£100m

Games developer

Splash Damage

London

16

Akin Babayigit

£96m

Games developer

Tripledot Studios

London

17

Sean Murray

£94m

Games developer

Hello Games

South East

18

Chris Stamper and family

£74m

Games developer

Rare Games

East Midlands

19

Jon Brown and family

£70m

Games developer

Boneloaf

Yorkshire and the Humber

20

Christian Facey

£52m

Games developer

AudioMob

London

21=

Daniel Knight

£50m

Games developer

Kinetic Games

South East

21=

KSI and The Sidemen

£50m

Vlogger / YouTuber

Throne Holdings

South East

21=

Terry Malham and family

£50m

Games developer

Outright Games

South East

21=

Jas Purewal

£50m

Games developer

FacePunch Studios

West Midlands

25

PewDiePie (Felix Kjellberg)

£45m

Vlogger / YouTuber

PewDie Productions

South East

26=

Luca Galante

£40m

Games developer

Poncle

London

26=

Dan TDM (Dan Middleton)

£40m

Vlogger / YouTuber

The Diamond Minecart

London

28

Patrick and Tamsin O’Luanaigh

£26m

Virtual reality 

nDreams

South East

29

Eyal Chameides

£22m

Games developer

Tripledot Studios

London

30

Ali-A (Alastair Aiken)

£15m

Vlogger / YouTuber

Ali-A Entertainment

South East

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