The Most Intriguing Billionaire Heiresses

It used to be heiresses just lunched, shopped and partied. Don't tell the $20 billion babies on Forbes' list of the 20 Most Intriguing Billionaire Heiresses, who defy the stereotype of the bon-bon popping princess thanks to achievements in business, sports and the arts.

Though society and gossip columns track them like Hollywood starlets, these women distinguish themselves by exhibiting the tenacity and risk-taking that makes their parents the most powerful people on Earth. Not all are success stories -- it may take a lifetime for these women to match their parents' legacies.

Forbes editors -- our very own "wealth experts" -- compiled the list. Under 40 and hailing from around the world, the heiresses are ranked according to their father's or mother's most recent net worth on either Forbes' World's Billionaires list, the Forbes 400 list of the Richest Americans or Forbes Asia's 40 Richest Indians.

Vanisha Mittal tops the ranking. Daughter of Indian-born, London-based steel magnate Lakshmi Mittal, Forbes estimates his net worth at $51 billion. Like her brother, Vanisha is active in her father's industrial empire, holding a seat on Mittal Steel's board after interning in the business. She's perhaps best known -- dare we say infamous -- for the $60 million wedding her father threw her and 1,000 of their closest friends in 2005. A performance by pop star Kylie Minogue capped the week-long Parisian affair.

Number two on the list: Delphine Arnault Gancia, daughter of France's Bernard Arnault ($26 billion), who runs the Moet Hennessy Louis Vuitton luxury goods empire. The former McKinsey consultant is the first woman to have been named a director on the LVMH board. At No. 3 is Marta Ortega Perez, the youngest child of Spain's richest resident, Amancio Ortega ($24 billion), the self-made apparel manufacturing giant who lords over Inditex, which counts the Zara fashion chain among its assets. Marta is being groomed to succeed her father, and she's learning the how-to's of retail by working the floor -- stocking shelves, assisting customers -- in some of the family's stores.

Hind Hariri, the youngest child of construction tycoon-turned Lebanese Prime Minister Rafik Hariri, also makes it. Slain in 2005 in a car bombing, his children split the fortune, crowning Hind, albeit briefly, the youngest person listed on Forbes' World's Billionaires list in 2006 with a fortune of $1.4 billion. Despite the tragic circumstances of her father's death, Hind graduated last year from the Lebanese American University in Beirut undeterred from politics. She campaigned for her brother Saad in his recent successful bid for a seat in Lebanon's Parliament.

Two heiresses on the list are vying for spots on America's 2008 Olympic team for show jumping. Both Georgina Bloomberg, daughter of New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg ($11.5 billion), and Paige Johnson, daughter of Black Entertainment Television founders Robert ($1 billion) and Sheila Johnson, are world- class equestrians with scores of championships under their respective belts.

Several socialites also make the list. Allison Sarofim, daughter of Houston investor Fayez Shalaby Sarofim, is a classically trained chef and sometime actress. The so-called "Downtown Doyenne" transformed her townhouse in Manhattan's West Village into a pseudo-salon for her legendary soirees (slumber parties in her basement, burgers and champagne inside a Moroccan tent erected in her attic). Anna Getty, niece of Gordon Getty and stepdaughter of John Paul Getty III, is a former actress turned yoga guru. She now runs PureStyle Living, purveyors of instructional yoga DVDs and other eco-friendly gear.

Equally accessible: Josie Ho Chiu Yi, daughter of one of Hong Kong's richest men, Stanley Ho ($7 billion). Josie Ho, as she's known to fans, is an indie rocker with several films and commercials to her credit. She even dishes on the often-unglamorous details of her gigs on her blog, JosieHo.com.

Anna Anisimova, daughter of Russian metals mogul Vassily Anisimov ($2 billion), is the paparazzi's favorite bicoastal It Girl of the moment. Her knockout looks help, but her dealmaking really generates the ink. In 2005 she debuted in Manhattan's clubby real estate scene, shelling out $23 million to buy Diane Von Furstenberg's downtown Manhattan headquarters. Most recently, the former model paid $15 million for her 4,000-square-foot pad in the new Time Warner Center.