London: Saudi billionaire Prince Al Waleed Bin Talal has sued Forbes magazine for libel in a British court,for understating his wealth in rich list.

Alleging the valuation of his wealth at $20 billion (Dh73.5 billion)which was short of the mark by $9.6 billion.

The prince, a grandson of Saudi Arabias founder and nephew of King Abdullah, had attacked the US magazines ranking of world billionaires as flawed and biased against Middle Eastern businesses after he was ranked number 26 in this years list.

An official at the High Court in London confirmed that Prince Al Waleed had filed a defamation suit against Forbes.

Through his Kingdom Holding Company, Prince Al Waleed owns large stakes in Citigroup, News Corp and Apple Inc, among other companies. He is also owner or part-owner of luxury hotels including the Plaza in New York, the Savoy in London and the George V in Paris.