How Much is Saddam Hussein Worth? Saddam Hussein's Total Wealth in Net Worth 2026: Career Earnings & Assets

As one of the most talked-about figures, Saddam Hussein has built a significant fortune. In this article, we dive deep into the assets and career highlights.

What was Saddam Hussein's Net Worth?

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In the days before Baghdad fell thousands of electronic wire transfers sent billions in funds away from Iraq and into foreign accounts, primarily in Switzerland. Some of that was sent by regular wealthy people of Iraq, but it is estimated that perhaps as much as $5 – $10 billion was transferred by Saddam's family members to accounts they would control. Many of these transfers were overseen by Saddam's half-brother Barzan Ibrahim al-Tikriti. Barzan was the Iraqi ambassador to the United Nations for a decade. During that time he was based in Geneva, Switzerland.

Saddam formally rose to power in 1979, although he had been the de facto head of Iraq for several years prior. He suppressed several movements, particularly Shi'a and Kurdish movements seeking to overthrow the government or gain independence, and maintained power during the Iran–Iraq War and the Gulf War. Whereas some venerated Saddam for his opposition to Israel—which included the use of military force —he was widely condemned in the west for the brutality of his dictatorship. In the spring of 2003, a coalition of foreign nations invaded Iraq and deposed him. He was subsequently tried and executed for crimes against the Shi'ite people in 2006.

American forces concluded it was within their rights to hoard the looted money and use it as they saw fit. Some of the money was spent on legitimate war needs, but some was stolen by US soldiers. For example, the FBI would eventually charge an American soldier who made around 91 bank deposits totaling $440,000 into a bank in Yuma, Arizona. He was a marine in charge of counting money in Fallujah. A different soldier stole around $700,000. He was caught when he bought a BMW and a hummer basically right when he got home. Approximately 35 US soldiers were charged with stealing Saddam's cash.

Saddam Hussein was born Saddam Hussein Abd al-Majid al-Tikriti on April 28, 1937, in Al-Awja, Saladin Governorate, Kingdom of Iraq. Before Saddam's birth, his father and brother both passed away from cancer, and overcome with grief, his mother, Subha Tulfah al-Mussallat, tried to abort the pregnancy and attempted suicide. After Hussein's birth, Subha sent him to live with his uncle, Khairallah Talfah, in Baghdad. Subha later married Ibrahim al-Hassan and had three more children; Saddam lived with them for a period but at 10 years old, he fled due to his stepfather's abuse. He returned to the home of his uncle, a Sunni Muslim and Anglo-Iraqi War veteran who became Baghdad's mayor during Hussein's reign. In Baghdad, Saddam studied at a nationalistic high school and later spent three years in law school, but he dropped out at age 20, joining the pan-Arab Ba'ath Party in 1957. Two years later, the party tried to assassinate Abd al-Karim Qasim, the president of Iraq, and though many of the individuals involved were caught and executed, Hussein escaped to Syria. He later fled to Egypt and resumed his law studies.

Around the same time, roughly $650 million in USD was found behind a false wall at the former palace of Saddam's other son Uday. Military investigators initially assumed this stash was part of the $1 billion taken from the Central Bank. It turned out to be a totally separate stash!

At some point immediately prior to the American invasion of Iraq, over $1 billion in cash was removed from the Central Bank of Iraq in a single evening by a half dozen military trucks. For decades Saddam had been selling oil on the black marker, because Iraq was sanctioned, to countries like Turkey and Syria for cash. It would later be revealed that Saddam's son Qusay ordered the removal of the cash which consisted of $900 million in USD and $100 million in Euros. Most of the money was eventually discovered in one of Saddam's palaces. After securing the palace, American troops were shocked to discover hundreds of aluminum boxes, each stuffed with around $4 million in cash. The money was confiscated and trucked back to a bank setup controlled by the US military.

Saddam Hussein was an Iraqi politician who had a net worth of $2 billion at the absolute peak of his power, Saddam Hussein served as the President of Iraq from 1979 to 2003.

Ultimately, Saddam Hussein's financial journey is a testament to their success.

Disclaimer: All net worth figures are estimates based on public data.