Coming Next Week: Rhode Island’s 50 Wealthiest and Most Influential

Coming Next Week: Rhode Island’s 50 Wealthiest and Most Influential

Starting on Monday, GoLocal will unveil its list of the 50 Wealthiest and Most Influential Rhode Islanders.

This is the third time GoLocal has published this list over the past decade.

In the inaugural edition in 2013, GoLocalProv teamed up WealthEngine — a leading provider of sophisticated wealth identification and prospect research solutions -- to put together the first-ever list of the wealthiest and most influential in the state.

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We then updated the list and expanded the data sources to include Securities and Exchange documents, Salary.com, IRS 990 forms, Million Dollar Donor database, Corporate Pay-Watch, Open Secrets, FEC and RI Campaign Finance reports, RI Financial Disclosure Statements and a range of other data sources.

In that first edition of the list, partners at Providence Equity Partners held three of the top five positions — Jonathan Nelson claimed the top position.

In 2015, GoLocal published an all new roster. This time, the top position on the list was claimed by then-CVS CEO Larry Merlo.

GoLocal was prepared to publish in 2020, but then the pandemic hits. And, no one knew whose fortune would survive the economic chaos and who would flourish.

 

New Faces, New Fortunes 

Now in 2022, GoLocal has revamped and updated the list. 

Over the seven years, some have climbed the rankings, and others have fallen off.

There are 23 new faces to the list since 2015.

"It is a tremendously interesting process to develop the list. In many cases, the names on the list are members of families that have dominated Rhode Island for decades, but there has also been tremendous change," said Josh Fenton, CEO and co-founder of GoLocal. "One of the biggest takeaways is how many on the list are influential not only in Rhode Island, but also nationally and globally."

 

Money Alone Does's Get You on the List

In reviewing the rankings, it is critical to understand that political power alone will not get you on the list.

And, massive wealth alone does not ensure a place on the roster either.

To make the list, it is the combination of economic wealth coupled with influence.

The people on this list always get their phone calls returned.