Money and power have always been thought of as natural bedfellows: you only stand a chance of holding sway if you have the wealth to back it up.

To test the truth of this we combined The Times Power 100 with The Sunday Times Rich List - and we discovered the opposite. In the world of British business at least, it seems that you don't have to be rich to be powerful.

The Power 100 is an annually compiled survey of the top names in business in the UK. We cross-referenced the 100 men and women in this list with The Sunday Times Rich List, to produce the Richest Power List. There are 26 people in our combined list, which is ranked by wealth.

Of the 26 of the Power 100 that make it onto the Rich List, only 10 claim a place in the top 100. Lakshmi Mittal, who tops the Rich List, also leads our combined list. Mr Mittal, president and chief executive of Arcelor Mittal, the world's largest steelmaker, is worth an estimated £27.7 billion.

But some of the richest are the least influential: for all his £4 billion-plus fortune and the familiar sight of his shops on Britain's high streets, Sir Philip Green creeps into the Power 100 at number 91, followed by Sir Richard Branson at 92. They claim second and third place in this list.

The man who manages the economy, and the man who would like to - Chancellor Alistair Darling and his shadow George Osborne - are absent from the Richest Power 100, despite being placed at numbers 11 and 51 respectively in the Power 100.

Mervyn King, the Governor of the Bank of England, beats the Chancellor with his ranking at number 7 in the Power 100, but he too is absent from the combined list.

There is a strong showing from private equity - Sir Ronald Cohen, Guy Hands, Damon Buffini and Jon Moulton all feature.

Sir Nigel Rudd, the serial dealmaker, is in joint-25th place with Lord Hollick, the Labour peer whose career has taken him from UBM to KKR, the Southbank Centre and Diageo.

From the entertainment world comes Simon Cowell, the notoriously nasty judge and producer who has led talent show series including X-Factor, Pop Idol, American Idol and Britain's Got Talent to prime-time success in the UK and the US, and has amassed an estimated £112 million fortune.

Bob Diamond, chief executive at Barclays Capital, is ranked at number 23. Mr Diamond is among the best-paid executives in the FTSE 100. Barclays might have reeled from the effects of the credit crunch, but Mr Diamond was paid £21 million in 2007 - although this marginally failed to match his £22 million package for 2006.

But there is one assumption is particular that the Richest Power List seems to support: money and influence lie mainly with men. While only 10 women featured the Power 100, not even one is to be found in the combined list.

1. Lakshmi Mittal

President and chief executive of Arcelor Mittal

Worth: £27.7 billion

Power 100 ranking: 6

Rich List ranking: 1

2. Sir Philip Green

Owner, BHS and Arcadia

Worth: £4.33 billion

Power 100 ranking: 91

Rich List ranking: 9

3. Sir Richard Branson

Founder and owner, Virgin Group

Worth: £2.7 billion

Power 100 ranking: 92

Rich List ranking: 20

4. Jim Ratcliffe

Founder, chairman and chief executive of Ineos

Worth: £2.3 billion

Power 100 ranking: 54

Rich List ranking: 25

5. Nat Rothschild

President of Atticus, the hedge fund

Worth: £1.4 billion

Power 100 ranking: 76

Rich List ranking: 53

6. Michael Spencer

Chief executive of Icap

Worth: £1.15 billion

Power 100 ranking: 20

Rich List ranking: 62

7. Charles Dunstone

Co-founder and chief executive of Carphone Warehouse

Worth: £904 million

Power 100 ranking: 78

Rich List ranking: 83

8. Sir Stelios Haji-Ioannou

Founder, easyGroup

Worth: £812 million

Power 100 ranking: 35

Rich List ranking: 94

10. Sir James Dyson

Designer and inventor

Worth: £760 million

Power 100 ranking: 46

Rich List ranking: 98=

11. Hugh Osmond

Entrepreneur and chief executive, Pearl Group

Worth: £350 million

Power 100 ranking: 31

Rich List ranking: 251=

12. Ian Wace

Co-founder of Marshall Wace Asset Management

Worth: £280 million

Power 100 ranking: 56

Rich List ranking: 292=

13. Sir Ronald Cohen

Co-founder, Apax Partners

Worth: £260 million

Power 100 ranking: 45

Rich List ranking: 312=

14. Guy Hands

Founder and chief executive of Terra Firma

Worth: £250 million

Power 100 ranking: 12

Rich List ranking: 325=

15. Michael Sherwood

Co-chief executive of Goldman Sachs International

Worth: £200 million

Power 100 ranking: 24

Rich List ranking: 397=

16. Peter Sutherland

Chairman of BP

Worth: £169 million

Power 100 ranking: 26

Rich List ranking: 488

17. Damon Buffini

Chairman of Permira

Worth: £150 million

Power 100 ranking: 3

Rich List ranking: 525=

18. Jon Moulton

Managing partner, Alchemy Partners

Worth: £135 million

Power 100 ranking: 71

Rich List ranking: 581=

19. Simon Robertson

Senior nonexecutive director of HSBC

Worth: £130 million

Power 100 ranking: 65

Rich List ranking: 597=

20. Luke Johnson

Entrepreneur and chairman of Channel 4

Worth: £120 million

Power 100 ranking: 96

Rich List ranking: 644=

21. Simon Cowell

Television and music producer

Worth: £112 million

Power 100 ranking: 77

Rich List ranking: 717=

22. Sir Martin Sorrell

Chief executive of WPP

Worth: £106 million

Power 100 ranking: 23

Rich List ranking: 755=

23. Bob Diamond

President of Barclays and chief executive of Barclays Capital

Worth: £85 million

Power 100 ranking: 13

Rich List ranking: 924=

23. Bart Becht

Chief executive of Reckitt Benckiser

Worth: £80 million

Power 100 ranking: 17

Rich List ranking: 969=

24. Arun Sarin

Chief executive of Vodafone

Worth: £60 million

Power 100 ranking: 38

Rich List ranking: 1259=

25= Sir Nigel Rudd

Chairman of BAA

Worth: £40 million

Power 100 ranking: 21

Rich List ranking: 1794=

25= Lord Hollick

Nonexecutive director of Diageo, KKR, the Nielsen Company and Honeywell International

Worth: £40 million

Power 100 ranking: 52

Rich List ranking: 1794=