The New York Post picks up a Guardian report that embattled Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak could be the richest man in the world.

Worth about $70 billion, the Post says most of his money is stashed in foreign bank accounts and “shadowy real-estate holdings.”

That sum makes Mubarak more wealthy than Mexico’s Carlos Slim and Bill Gates, whose fortunes clock in at $53.5 billion and $53 billion, respectively.

Mubarak has benefited from hugely profitable investments as president. “There was a lot of corruption in this regime and stifling of public resources for personal gain,” says an expert.

But other Middle Eastern leaders may boast comparable fortunes of between $40 billion and $70 billion, a political science professor tells ABC News.

Sources: NYpost – Newser – ABC News