With 62 of its alumni now billionaires, Harvard tops Forbes’ list of ‘Billionaire Universities’, followed by Stanford that boasts of 28 billionaire graduates.

The number of Harvard alumni who are billionaires swelled to 62, up from 54 in 2009, “more than any other American university by a long shot,” Forbes said.

Harvard’s billionaire alumni are an accomplished group. They include Microsoft Chief Executive Steve Ballmer, New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg and media tycoon Sumner Redstone.

Hollywood actress Sandra Bullock has topped Forbes magazine’s highest-paid actress list, according to reports.

The Oscar-winning actress earned $56 million over the past year after starring in and producing a series of blockbuster films.

The 46-year-old won an Oscar for The Blind Side, which made nearly $310 million at global box offices on a budget of around $30 million.

English Premiership giant Manchester United is the most valuable franchise in sports, according to a study compiled by Forbes Magazine.

Forbes released its list of the world’s most valuable teams Wednesday, with Manchester on top at 1.84 billion dollars.

The second highest and top North American franchise is the National Football League’s Dallas Cowboys at 1.65 billion dollars.

Mexican tycoon Carlos Slim may be the world’s richest man but he limits his monthly salary to $24,000 and travels in a Suburban, according to his biography.

Mr Slim, 70, knocked Bill Gates form the top of the Forbes list of the world’s billionaires this year with an estimated fortune of US$53.5 billion.

He began his business career aged 10, selling sweets and drinks to his family and later made his name with aggressive investments during crises.

Thailand’s King Bhumibol remains the world’s richest royal for the third year in a row, despite his country’s riots and turmoil.

Royal assets are held under Thailand’s Crown Property Bureau, which benefited from stock market and real estate gains in 2009. As a result, his fortune remains stable at $30 billion, at least for now.

The rioting that broke out in March, led by protesters demanding new elections, may irreparably damage the country’s tourism and investment markets.

Collectively the group’s fortune is down 9 per cent, or $10 billion, to $99 billion. (That is $32 billion below their 2008 sum).

Superstar US talkshow host Oprah Winfrey has has been named the most powerful celebrity in the world by Forbes magazine.

Winfrey knocked film star Angelina Jolie off the top spot of Forbes’s annual Celebrity 100 list, which is based on earnings and media exposure.

In second place to the enduring talkshow diva, popular singer Beyonce Knowles jumped two positions with earnings of 87 million dollars, following a profitable year for her growing entertainment and fashion empire.