King Charles inherits not just the throne after the death of his mother, Queen Elizabeth II, but also her private fortune — without having to pay inheritance tax.
British monarchs are not required to reveal their private finances but according to the Sunday Times Rich List 2022, the queen was worth some £370 million ($426 million), up £5 million on the previous year.
The bulk of the late sovereign’s personal wealth will pass to Charles intact, without the British government getting a slice.
The real royal wealth — the Crown Estate lands and the Royal Collection of art and jewellery, plus official residences and the Royal Archives — is held by the monarchy as an institution.
As such, they will only pass to Charles in trust.
Similarly, The Crown Jewels, estimated to be worth at least £3 billion, only belonged symbolically to the queen and are automatically transferred to her successor.
The queen’s private wealth will be added to Charles’ own, which has been estimated at some $100 million by the site celebritynetworth.com.