Jeff Bezos Surpasses Elon Musk as World’s Wealthiest Billionaire
In a surprising turn of events, Jeff Bezos has overtaken Elon Musk as the world’s wealthiest billionaire, according to Bloomberg’s Billionaires Index. With an estimated personal fortune of $200.3 billion, Bezos now sits comfortably at the top spot, surpassing Musk’s net worth of $197.7 billion. This shift in rankings can be attributed to Tesla’s recent stock performance, including a 7% drop on Monday.
For Musk, this marks the first time in over nine months that he has fallen off the top of the billionaire ranking. On the other hand, Bezos, the founder of Amazon, has previously held the number one position in 2021. The two tech leaders have been engaged in a constant battle for the title of the world’s wealthiest individual.
Amazon’s stock price has seen a remarkable increase of over 17% since the beginning of 2024. This surge has significantly contributed to Bezos’ personal fortune, along with the 938.25 million shares he still owns as of late February. Bezos also sold $8.5 billion worth of company stock under a prearranged trading plan.
The small gap between Musk and Bezos’ net worths means that their positions on Bloomberg’s list could easily change depending on the performance of Amazon and Tesla shares. In fact, Musk has previously competed with LVMH CEO Bernard Arnault for the top spot on Bloomberg’s ranking. On Monday, there was less than a $1 billion difference between Musk and Arnault’s personal fortunes.
It is worth noting that the world’s top five richest individuals have seen a staggering 114% increase in their wealth since 2020. This highlights the growing wealth inequality and concentration of riches among a select few.
The battle for the title of the world’s wealthiest billionaire continues to captivate the public’s attention. Both Bezos and Musk have made significant contributions to the tech industry, revolutionizing e-commerce and electric vehicles, respectively. As their fortunes fluctuate, it remains to be seen who will ultimately claim the top spot in the ever-changing landscape of wealth accumulation.