Daryl Katz grew up in Edmonton, went to Jasper Place High School, got his law degree from the University of Alberta, and then spent the next three decades quietly building one of the most valuable private empires in Canadian history.
Forbes just put a number on it. Katz ranked 542nd on the 2026 World's Billionaires List with a net worth of $7.2 billion up $1.4 billion from last year alone, and a jump of 63 spots up the rankings.
How Daryl Katz Built His Fortune
It started with a $300,000 bet in 1991. Katz and his father bought the Canadian rights to the Medicine Shoppe pharmacy franchise. From there he acquired Rexall, then Pharma Plus, and kept building until the Katz Group controlled hundreds of drugstores across the country. In 2016 he sold the pharmacy network to McKesson Corporation for $3 billion CAD and that was just one chapter.
The money from that sale went into real estate, sports, and entertainment. Edmonton knows the result better than anyone Rogers Place, the ICE District, and the Edmonton Oilers, which Katz bought in 2008 for $200 million, a franchise now worth many times that figure.
Daryl Katz Net Worth Over Time
His wealth trajectory tells its own story:
2018-2019: $3.1 billion
2021: $3.6 billion
2022: $4.5 billion
2024: $5 billion
2025: $5.8 billion
2026: $7.2 billion
That's more than doubled in four years driven by the continued growth of the Katz Group of Companies and the rising value of his real estate and entertainment holdings across Alberta and beyond.
Where Daryl Katz Ranks Among the World's Wealthiest
The 2026 Forbes billionaires list broke records across the board 3,428 billionaires worldwide, 400 more than last year, collectively worth a record $20.1 trillion. Elon Musk topped the list at $839 billion. Katz sits at number 542 globally, one of only a handful of Canadians to crack the top 600 on the planet.
For an Edmonton kid who started in the pharmacy business, that's not a bad place to land.
Not Everyone Was Cheering
Not everyone in Edmonton has celebrated his rise without question. The Rogers Place deal which saw significant public funding go toward an arena for a man already worth billions was one of the most debated decisions in the city's recent history. Critics argued taxpayers subsidized a billionaire's asset. Supporters said it revitalized a neglected downtown core. A decade later, both things ended up being true.
The Bigger Picture
This year's Forbes list broke records across the board 3,428 billionaires worldwide, 400 more than last year, collectively worth $20.1 trillion. Elon Musk topped the list at $839 billion. Katz sits comfortably in the top 600 globally, which for an Edmonton kid who started in pharmacies is not a bad place to land.
