The 20 richest people in South Africa got richer in the past year, but only by eight percent.

Patrice Motsepe, worth R20.07 billion, topped the Sunday Times Rich List for the second year running, but his fortune shrank 13 percent.

Third-ranked Lakshni Mittal's stake in steel giant ArcelorMittal was 38 percent lower than last year, at R13bn.

Mining heir Nicky Oppenheimer, in fourth place, has a 2.3 percent stake in Anglo American worth R9bn, a 19 percent loss compared to the previous year.

Steel and mining share prices have been dragged down by a sluggish global economy.

Despite their hammering, these three still accounted for over a third of the combined wealth of the top 20.

Retail mogul Christo Wiese placed second on the list with R15.226bn.

Each person on the top 20 was worth more than R2bn, with the top 30 worth more than R1bn, based on disclosed investments in listed companies.

Sixteen of the top 20 were entrepreneurs.