The two richest economists in history, thus far, were investors. John Maynard Keynes made a fortune in the 1920s, and lost it in the crash, only to build another fortune by snapping up stocks in the aftermath. He died a millionaire, not as the richest economist.
That honor belongs to David Ricardo (1772-1823), a British economist who was also a bond trader – there were no stocks other than the East India Company during his lifetime. Ricardo was a master of arbitrage and made a fortune exploiting differences in pricing between comparable government bonds. Foreshadowing Keynes, Ricardo was also highly contrarian. By buying up British war bonds when they were selling at a steep discount due to Napoleon's victories, Ricardo is said to have made 1 million pounds when Napoleon was defeated at Waterloo.
