Worth $101B, five billionaires live in Kansas. Two new faces this year
Kansas is home to five billionaires in 2026, with two living in the Wichita area, according to annual Forbes billionaires ranking.
They have a combined net worth of $101 billion as of March 10. That is four times more money than a year of state budget spending for Kansas, according to data from the Urban Institute.
The state added two billionaires since last year — Peter Mallouk of the Kansas City area and Douglas Rippel of Maize.
The wealth of the three returning billionaires increased nearly 10% or $7.5 billion in the last 12 months, outpacing the U.S. inflation of 2.4%.
The United States has the most billionaires in the world, totaling 989, worth a total of $8.4 trillion. This is greater than the gross domestic products of Japan and India combined, according to most recent World Bank data.
Here are the five billionaires living in Kansas.
Charles Koch
- Net worth: $73.8 billion
- Age: 90
- Residence: Wichita
Charles Koch’s father started Koch Industries, where Charles has been chairman for more than 50 years. The company is involved in gas pipelines, chemicals and manufacturing, among other industries.
Peter Mallouk
- Net worth: $16.1 billion
- Age: 56
- Residence: Leawood
A University of Kansas and Rockhurst High School graduate, Peter Mallouk is the CEO of Creative Planning, an Overland Park wealth management company. Mallouk joined the Forbes billionaire list this year. He owns a majority stake in Sporting KC and a minority stake in the Royals. While his town of residence is not listed by Forbes, Mallouk is registered to vote at a $3.4 million Leawood home owned by his wife Veronica.
Min Kao and family
- Net worth: $7.7 billion
- Age: 77
- Residence: Leawood
Min Kao co-founded GPS company Garmin in 1989 and still serves as executive chairman. Born in Taiwan, he migrated to the United States in the 1970s.
Lamar Hunt, Jr. and family
- Net worth: $2 billion
- Age: 69
- Residence: Leawood
Lamar Hunt Jr. is the eldest son of Kansas City Chiefs founder Lamar Hunt Sr., whose father was an oil tycoon. Hunt Jr. and his three billionaire siblings co-own the football team. Forbes says the other Hunts live in Dallas, including Chiefs chairman and CEO Clark Hunt.
Douglas Rippel
- Net worth: $1.4 billion
- Age: 59
- Residence: Maize
In 2013, Douglas Rippel founded American First Finance, a buy-now-pay-later company. The company was sold to pawn shop company FirstCash in 2021. Rippel sat on their board of directors until stepping down in 2024. Rippel studied at both Kansas State and Wichita State universities, and joined the Forbes billionaire list this year.
This story was originally published March 17, 2026 at 8:13 PM with the headline "Worth $101B, five billionaires live in Kansas. Two new faces this year."
