The 10 Richest People in Puerto Rico
Puerto Rico – which translates in Spanish to rich port, is known officially as the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico. This Caribbean island nation, which consists of the main island plus various smaller islands, is an unincorporated territory of the United States. It is part of the Greater Antilles and located about 1,100 miles to the south and east of Magic City – Miami.
Puerto Rico, whose capital is San Juan, consists of 5,320 square miles, which makes it smaller than Connecticut but bigger than Delaware. Its topography is characterized as primarily mountainous, with large flat areas at the southern and northern coasts of the island offering stunning beaches and panoramic and scenic views of the crystal-clear Caribbean waters.
Puerto Ricans have been U.S. citizens since 1917. With this privilege, they can move freely between the island nation and the U.S. mainland, although voting and other rights vary depending on where they live. Since 2007, the Puerto Rican government has issued Certificates of Puerto Rican Citizenship to any applicant who can prove that they were born in Puerto Rico or any applicant born off the island who can prove they had at least one parent who was born in Puerto Rico.
This Caribbean island provides a year-round quality of life that has begun attracting millionaires from around the globe due to the tax advantages and government financial incentives available for high-net-worth individuals.
Our Methodology
To begin, we defined our list of the richest people in Puerto Rico to include the following Puerto Ricans as defined by its government-
- People who were born in Puerto Rico
- People who are of full or partial Puerto Rican descent.
For our analysis of the wealthiest Puerto Ricans, we gathered recent data from websites dedicated to providing information about celebrities, sports stars, philanthropic individuals, and wealth that include –
- Bloomberg Billionaires Index
- The Forbes Real Time Billionaires List
- The Credit Suisse Global Wealth Report
- Celebrity Net Worth
- The Richest
- Wealthy Gorilla
Next, we list the 17 richest people in Puerto Rico.
The 17 Richest People in Puerto Rico
As of 2023, there are an estimated 2,640 billionaires on Earth – defined by those with ten-figure fortunes, which includes these wealthiest Puerto Ricans –
17. Roselyn Sánchez Net Worth: $18 Million
Roselyn Sánchez, who was born in 1973 in San Juan, is a well-known (born April 2, 1973) award-winning songwriter, model, actress, producer, writer model, and writer. To fulfill her goal of acting and dancing, Sanchez moved to N.Y., where she had a part in Captain Ron, a film shot partially in Puerto Rico. Sanchez is best known for winning the 1994 Miss Puerto Rico contest and her roles on Without a Trace (T.V.) Rush Hour 2, Act of Valor, and more.
16. Miguel Cotto Net Worth: $25 Million
Miguel Cotto is a Puerto Rican-born boxer who was born in 1980 in Rhode Island to parents of Puerto Rican descent. Cotto, who comes from a long line of professional boxers, moved back to Puerto Rico before Cotto reached two years old. Cotto’s 17-year catching career spanned from 2001 to 2017. During this time, Cotto won multiple world championships during this period. He became the first Puerto Rican boxer ever to win world titles among four different weight classes, which include light welterweight to middleweight. Cotto was inducted into the 2022 class of the International Boxing Hall of Fame.
15. Ednita Nazario Net Worth: $25 Million
Ednita Nazario, who was born in Ponce, Puerto Rico, in 1955, is a Puerto Rican musician, songwriter, singer, and actress who has achieved a net worth of $25 million. Her career began when she recorded her first song at six years of age. In 1986, Nazario released her debut studio album entitled Tu Sin Mi, which reached #5 on Billboard’s Latin Pop Albums. Nazario’s success continued with Acustico, which reached #1 in 2022 on the Billboard Latin Pop Albums chart. She followed with four albums, all of which reached #1 on Billboard’s Latin Pop Albums charts and Top Latin Albums.
14. Rita Moreno Net Worth: $30 million
Rita Moreno is a wildly popular and successful actress, singer, and dancer whose career spans more than eight decades. Moreno, who was born in Humacao, PR, is one of the very few artists to have garnered an EGOT – winning an Emmy, a Grammy, an Oscar, and a Tony. Some of Rita Morena’s most notable singing and acting roles were in West Side Story and Singin’ in the Rain. Now aged 92 years old, she’s worth an approximate $30 million.
13. Wisin Net Worth: $40 million
Wisin, who was born Juan Luis Morera Luna, is a reggaeton rapper, producer, and singer who is best known for his unique rapping style. As a member of Wisin and Yandel, they released their debut album in 2000. Five years later, their Mi Vida…My Life hit the mainstream airwaves. After several successful years, the duo went into hiatus, eventually coming back together in 2018 to release their tenth studio album. During their professional collaboration break, Wisin released several successful albums and starred as a coach on the Spanish-language version of The Voice.
12. Chayanne Net Worth: $40 Million
Elmer Figueroa Arce, who is best known as Chayanne, was born in Rio Piedras, Puerto Rico. He is a multi-talented Puerto Rican pop singer and actor. In the late 1970s, he auditioned for Menudo but was too young to be in what would become a successful recording group. As a solo artist, Chayanne has released nearly two dozen albums, which sold more than 15 million records worldwide, making him among Latin America’s best-selling music artists.
11. Daddy Yankee Net Worth: $50 Million
Daddy Yankee, born Ramon Luis Ayala Rodriquez in 1977, first wanted to be a professional Major League Baseball player. After getting shot in the leg in a barrio gun battle, he recognized his athletic limitations and instead turned to music. Daddy Yankee has become one of the most successful Latin music artists ever, selling more than 20 million records globally. According to Celebrity Net Worth, Daddy Yankee’s net worth is now approximately $50 million.
10. Benicio del Toro Net Worth: $65 million
Benicio del Toro was born in San German, Puerto Rico, in 1967. Benicio del Toro is an Academy Award, SAG, Golden Globe-winning actor who, at 21 years old, became the youngest actor to play a Bond henchman in the film License to Kill. He studied business and industry at U.C. San Diego but eventually studied at Circle in the Square Theater in NYC. Del Toro made his breakthrough as the wisecracking Fred Fenster in The Usual Suspects and has been going strong since in both television and film.
9. Yadier Molina Net Worth: $65 million
Yadier Molina was born in Bayamon, Puerto Rico in 1982. Molina, whose dad was an amateur baseball player (and held the lead for a number of all-time his in Puerto Rican baseball), played 19 seasons as the catcher for the MLB St Louis Cardinals. Molina is generally considered among the best defensive catchers ever to play professional baseball. Upon retiring, Molina held many records as a catcher, including the most games started and won. Molina was a member of 2 World’s Series Championship teams in 2006 and 2011.
8. Iván Rodríguez Torres Net Worth: $70 million
Iván Rodríguez Torres, or I-Rod, was born in Manatt, Puerto Rico. I-Rod spent many years as a Major League Baseball catcher who built his professional baseball career with a number of professional teams, including the Texas Rangers, New York Yankees, Florida Marlins, Houston Astros, Detroit Tigers, and Washington Nationals. I-Rod, or as he is affectionately known as Pudge, is ranked as one of the best catchers of all time, setting numerous records during his career and winning the American League MVP award in 1999. In 2017, Ivan Rodriguez was inducted into the National Baseball Hall of Fame and Museum.
7. Marc Antony Net Worth: $80 Million
Marc Antony is a selling actor, singer, and songwriter, considered among the best tropical salsa artists of all time, with multiple Grammy Awards as well as Latin Grammy Awards. He was born in NYC to Puerto Rican parents. He grew up in Spanish Harlem, the youngest of eight. His father was a musician who taught him to sing in English and Spanish at an early age. Marc Antony was married to Jennifer Lopez, another richest person from Puerto Rico on our list. He is a huge supporter of the Democratic Party and has sung at the DNC and for Clinton’s presidential campaign.
6. Lin-Manual Miranda Net Worth: $90 Million
Lin-Manuel Miranda was born in NYC to parents of Puerto Rican descent. He is a successful American songwriter, actor, singer, filmmaker, and rapper, best known for his musical genius in creating the Broadway musical Hamilton. Miranda won multiple awards, including a Pulitzer Prize, plus Tony Awards, Grammy Awards, and the honor of receiving the Genius Grant from the MacArthur Fellows Program in 2015. He has also received a number of honors degrees from Yeshiva University, Wesleyan, Penn, the University of Puerto Rico, and London’s Royal Academy of Music.
5. Ricky Martin Net Worth: $130 million
Ricky Martin is a singer, philanthropist, and actor who launched his solo music career in 1991, sold over 70 million records, and rose to become one of the most successful Latin music artists ever. Known as the King of Latin Music, Ricky Martin has been recognized as one of the greatest influencers who brought Latin pop to the U.S. mainstream with hit releases like Livin’ La Vida Loca. Ricky Martin’s commitment to eliminating Caribbean human trafficking was recognized in 2018 when NYC named June 7 Ricky Martin Day.
4. John Velazquez Net Worth: $250-$300 Million
John Velazquez was born in Carolina, Puerto Rica, and is the leading money-earning jockey in the history of the sport as of 2014. Velazquez, who is a U.S. Champion Jockey, began his Thoroughbred horse racing career in P.R. but moved to NY in 1990. As a jockey, Velazquez was best known for his nerves of steel and was inducted with the 2012 class of the Horse Racing Hall of Fame. He has won multiple Breeder’s Cups and Eclipse Awards for Outstanding Jockey as well.
3. Jennifer Lopez Net Worth: $400 million
Jennifer Lopez, a.k.a. J Lo, is an American singer and actress who is recognized among the top pop cultural icons and among the world’s most influential entertainers. Lopez was born to Puerto Rican parents in the Castle Hill section of the Bronx, a borough of NYC. As an artist, she contributed to helping boost the Latin pop movement in American music. Lopez is philanthropic and has contributed to charities, especially those related to first responders and children, for much of her career.
2. John Paulson Net Worth: $6 Billion
American businessman John Paulson has poured billions of assets into buying up resorts, spas, hotels, and office buildings on the island, asserting that Puerto Rico will evolve commercially to become the Singapore of the Caribbean. Paulson has also bought a vacation home and an apartment, which implies he has long-term plans that go beyond his private equity business. His portfolio, worth billions, comes from Paulson & Co., an investment management firm founded in 1994. In 2007, he evolved from a money manager into one of the most influential financiers when he made a huge but risky bet using credit default swaps to bet against the performance of the subprime mortgage lending market in the United States.
1. Orlando Bravo Net Worth: $6.3 Billion
Orlando Bravo is the first Puerto Rican born billionaire noted by Forbes as Wall Street’s Hottest Dealmaker. Bravo has made his personal fortune as the founder, president, and managing partner of Thomas Bravo, one of the top private equity firms across the globe. Since 2003, the company has completed hundreds of software deals worth billions of dollars. A noted philanthropist, Bravo has committed $millions to promote entrepreneurship in Puerto Rico, and following the destruction caused by Hurricane Maria, Orlando Bravo donated $10 million to aid Puerto Rican recovery process efforts.
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