David Steward grew up in a small Missouri house without indoor plumbing or heat. His family raised livestock and grew vegetables for the family, and his father worked several jobs to support eight children.
Today, the visionary St. Louis businessman is worth an estimated $12.3 billion, making him Missouri’s richest person and the wealthiest Black man in America who publicly identifies as Black, according to Forbes’ newly released ranking of the 400 wealthiest Americans.
His fortune far exceeds those of Oprah Winfrey, worth an estimated $3.4 billion, and Jay-Z, whose wealth is estimated at $2.8 billion. Forbes lists Palantir co-founder Alexander Karp, who has expressed ambiguity about his racial identity, ahead of Steward.
Steward, 75, founder and chairman of St. Louis-based World Wide Technology, ranks No. 110 nationally on the 2026 Forbes 400. His fortune is nearly $4 billion greater than that of Missouri’s second-richest person, Cargill shareholder Pauline MacMillan Keinath, whose wealth Forbes estimates at $8.4 billion.
Forbes’ estimates were calculated as of Sept. 4. Steward founded World Wide Technology in 1990. Forbes estimates the company has annual revenue of about $20 billion. WWT CEO Jim Kavanaugh ranks third among Missouri’s wealthiest residents, with an estimated fortune of $7.7 billion.
Steward’s journey from a small, segregated Missouri town to the chairman’s office of a massive global technology company is also a story of faith, family and giving back.
Lessons from his father
Born in Chicago in 1951, Steward moved with his family shortly after his birth to his mother’s hometown of Clinton, Missouri.
According to a biography published by the Horatio Alger Association of Distinguished Americans, Steward’s father worked as a mechanic and took on other jobs when racial discrimination limited his employment opportunities.
“My father was the first entrepreneur I ever knew,” Steward told the association. “He was an entrepreneur out of necessity.”
Steward was the first Black student to attend Clinton’s newly integrated elementary school and later was the only Black male in his high school graduating class.
After graduating from Central Missouri State University in 1973, he moved to St. Louis and worked as a substitute teacher before taking sales positions with Missouri Pacific Railroad and Federal Express.
In 1984, Steward borrowed $2,000 from his father to start a freight-bill auditing business. Six years later, he founded World Wide Technology.
Success did not come immediately. Steward sometimes went without a paycheck, and his car was repossessed from the company parking lot as employees watched.
The business survived those struggles and grew into one of the nation’s largest Black-owned companies.
Faith and family
For Steward, faith has remained central to his business decisions and family life.
In 2004, he published Doing Business by the Good Book, connecting biblical teachings with business practices. He and his wife, Thelma, also taught a Bible study class at Salem United Methodist Church in St. Louis.
The Rev. Terri Swan, the church’s senior pastor, said Steward’s religious convictions influence his approach to business and community service.
“He is a man of faith and action,” Swan said. “He believes that that faith should be put into action.”
Swan said Steward believes “he has been blessed so that he can bless others.”
Thelma Steward, a retired registered nurse who began her career at Homer G. Phillips Hospital, shares that commitment to serving others.
Their son, David Steward II, established a nursing scholarship in her name through the Foundation for Barnes-Jewish Hospital, encouraging Black students to pursue nursing.
The couple established the Steward Family Foundation in 2013, extending their philanthropic work in education, community development and other areas.
Giving back to St. Louis
Michael McMillan, president and CEO of the Urban League of Metropolitan St. Louis, said the couple’s support has been important to his organization for more than 25 years.
“David and Thelma Steward along with WWT have been Godsends to me personally and the Urban League for over 25 years as mentors, friends, allies, advisors and advocates,” McMillan said. “We would not be as successful as we are without them.”
McMillan said WWT has provided the Urban League with technology, volunteers and financial support.
The Stewards also have supported the St. Louis Symphony Orchestra, The Muny, The Sheldon and Jazz St. Louis.
“He and his wife Thelma do just as much in the community as they do in the boardroom,” McMillan said.
Michelle Tucker, president and CEO of United Way of Greater St. Louis, also praised Steward’s longtime philanthropy.
“Dave has been a trusted friend, thought partner and champion whose leadership continually challenges us to think bigger, innovate and find new ways to strengthen our region,” Tucker said.
Steward declined a St. Louis American request for an interview. But in a previously published United Way interview, he reflected on his parents’ sacrifices.
“Every day I ask myself: ‘Am I living my life worthy of the sacrifices they made on my behalf to be in the position I am today?’”