A wave of trillion-dollar fortunes is coming faster than most people think — good for those at the very top, and a sign of how far wealth is pulling apart from everyone else.

• The first trillionaires are expected within years, not generations.
• A trillion dollars is a thousand billion — a scale of wealth no person has ever held.
• The jump from billionaire to trillionaire is as big as the jump from millionaire to billionaire.
• Several people are likely to cross the line, not just one.

Outlook: Expect the race to the first trillion-dollar fortune to become a running story in business news.