‘Web of lies’: Kylie Jenner stripped of billionaire status

Kylie Jenner is no longer a billionaire and has been weaving a “web of lies” around her wealth for years, according to Forbes magazine.

Kylie Jenner has been stripped of her billionaire status, with Forbes accusing the young make-up mogul of weaving a “web of lies” around her wealth.

Forbes declared Jenner the youngest self-made billionaire of all time last year.

“She's the youngest-ever self-made billionaire, reaching a ten-figure fortune at a younger age than even Mark Zuckerberg," it had said.

But just over a year later, the US business magazine has accused the reality television star of “inflating the size and success of her business”.

In an article published on Saturday, it claimed: “Earlier this year, Kylie Jenner sold half of her cosmetics company in one of the greatest celebrity cash-outs of all time. But the deal’s fine print reveals that she has been inflating the size and success of her business for years”.

Kylie Jenner was declared the youngest self-made billionaire of all time last year. Picture: Rick Kern/Getty Images for Ulta Beauty

But Forbes now claims she’s been “inflating the size and success of her business for years”. Picture: Rick Kern/Getty Images for Ulta Beauty

The magazine says Jenner sold 51 per cent of her Kylie Cosmetics company to beauty giant Coty in a deal valued at $US1.2 billion in January.

But documents released by Coty over the past six months show her business is “significantly smaller and less profitable than the family has spent years leading the cosmetics industry and media outlets to believe”, it said.

“Based on this new information — plus the impact of COVID-19 on beauty stocks and consumer spending — Forbes now thinks that Kylie Jenner, even after pocketing an estimated $US340 million after taxes from the sale, is not a billionaire,” it declared.

It now estimates that Jenner’s personal fortune is just under $US900 million.

RELATED: Kylie Jenner becomes youngest self-made billionaire

Kylie’s success came from her Kylie Cosmetics brand. Picture: Reuters/Lucy Nicholson

KYLIE HITS BACK

Jenner hit back at the magazine’s accusations on Twitter, saying she “never asked for any title”.

“What am I even waking up to. I thought this was a reputable site. All I see are a number of inaccurate statements and unproven assumptions lol,” she wrote.

“I’ve never asked for any title or tried to lie my way there ever, period.”

She added that she could list “100 things more important right now than fixating on how much money I have”.

“But okay, I am blessed beyond my years, I have a beautiful daughter, and a successful business and I’m doing perfectly fine,” she said.

but okay 🤍 i am blessed beyond my years, i have a beautiful daughter, and a successful business and i’m doing perfectly fine.

— Kylie Jenner (@KylieJenner) May 29, 2020

Forbes said it reached out to the Jenners to confirm its numbers, but they did not respond.

“As usual, we asked the Jenners for input on our numbers. But pressed for answers on the many discrepancies, the typically chatty family did something out of character: They stopped answering our questions,” it said.

The magazine claims the Jenners likely had their accountant “draft tax returns with false numbers” to help juice its estimates of her earnings and net worth, but it cannot prove any documents were forged.

Jenner’s lawyer, Michael Kump, said the story was “filled with outright lies”.

“Forbes’ accusation that Kylie and her accountants ‘forged tax returns’ is unequivocally false and we are demanding that Forbes immediately and publicly retract that and other statements,” he said.

But Forbes spokesman Matthew Hutchison said the magazine’s “extensively-reported investigation was triggered by newly-filed documents that revealed glaring discrepancies between information privately supplied to journalists and information publicly supplied to shareholders”.

“Our reporters spotted the inaccuracies and spent months uncovering the facts. We encourage her attorney to re-read the article,” he said.

Jenner, who stars on Keeping Up With The Kardashians with her stepsisters Kim, Kourtney and Khloe, has hundreds of millions of followers across her social media channels and is one of the most influential voices among beauty consumers.

Kylie Cosmetics and Kylie Skin are two of the fastest-growing and most-engaged beauty brands on social media.

Jenner started her makeup line with lipstick kits in 2015, which sold out within minutes of their launch.

Coty Inc shares fell more than 13 per cent on Friday.