London, Apr 26 : Indian origin steel magnate Lakshmi Niwas Mittal lost as much as 23.5 billion pounds in the last one year due to the ongoing financial crisis world over.

The economic crisis has wiped 155 billion pounds from the fortunes of Britain''s wealthiest individuals and has almost halved the number of the nation's billionaires.

Figures compiled for the Sunday Times Rich List 2009 reveal that the number of billionaires has fallen from 75 to 43 in the past 12 months.

London, Aug 11 : Steel tycoon Laxmi Mittal’s record of buying the most expensive house has been broken by a mystery Russian billionaire, who splashed out 392 million pounds on one of the most expensive villas on the French Riviera along the Mediterranean Sea.

The sale of La Leopolda, a sumptuous villa on the Cote d''Azur, has fuelled worries over the invasion of Russian money.

The unnamed Russian bought the opulent villa from Lily Safra, the widow of Edmond Safra, a Lebanese banker who was killed by an arsonist''s fire in Switzerland in 2003.