Jeff Bezos is Close to Overtaking Elon Musk as the World’s Richest Person

Jeff Bezos on the Verge of Becoming the Richest Person Again

Jeff Bezos is poised to overtake Elon Musk and reclaim the title of the world's wealthiest person. With just a $5 billion gap between them, Bezos is closing in on Musk's fortune of $200 billion. This development comes as Mark Zuckerberg and Warren Buffett also climb the wealth rankings this year.

Jeff Bezos is inching closer to overtaking Elon Musk as the richest person in the world. Bolstered by a surge in Amazon's stock and a decline in Tesla's, Bezos has seen his estimated wealth increase by $18 billion this year, according to the Bloomberg Billionaires Index. With a net worth of $195 billion, Bezos now occupies second place on the rich list.

In contrast, Musk has experienced a $29 billion decrease in his fortune, primarily due to a 27% drop in Tesla's stock. However, Bloomberg's estimate still includes the value of approximately 304 million stock options from Musk's 2018 compensation plan, which a Delaware court recently voided.

Bezos' Amazon Shares and Musk's Tesla Stake

Bezos owns nearly 10% of Amazon, amounting to 988 million shares valued at $168 billion. Meanwhile, Musk holds approximately 13% of Tesla, which translates to around 411 million shares worth approximately $73 billion. Musk's remaining wealth comes from his stakes in SpaceX, Twitter, and other ventures.

It's worth mentioning that Bezos intends to sell up to 50 million Amazon shares, valued at $8.5 billion, by the end of January next year. This was revealed in his company's annual report, and the trading plan was adopted in November.

The Battle for the Richest Person Title

Musk's rise to the top of the Bloomberg index in January 2021 ended Bezos' reign that had lasted since 2017. Musk's net worth reached $194.9 billion, surpassing Bezos by nearly $10 billion, mainly due to the surge in Tesla's stock.

The recent release of Big Tech earnings has reshuffled Bloomberg's rich list this year. After an impressive earnings blowout, Meta stock surged by 20% on Friday, only to retreat by 3% on Monday. Founder Mark Zuckerberg's fortune stands at $165 billion, a $37 billion increase for the year, ranking him fourth on the rich list.

Warren Buffett climbed to seventh place, surpassing Oracle co-founder Larry Ellison and the "Google Guys" Larry Page and Sergey Brin on Friday. However, he slipped back to ninth place on Monday. Ellison's net worth has been impacted by the decline in his Tesla stake, while a 6% drop in Alphabet stock following earnings affected the value of Page and Brin's holdings.

Buffett's Berkshire Hathaway stock has seen a 9% increase this year as the economic outlook improves. His wealth grew by an estimated $10 billion in the first five weeks of the year, while Ellison's fortune only increased by about $7 billion, and Page and Brin gained roughly $3 billion each.

The Rise and Fall of Musk's Net Worth

Musk's net worth has experienced a significant decline, plummeting from approximately $340 billion at its peak in late 2021 to around $200 billion today. However, it's important to note that Tesla stock has still increased more than six-fold since the beginning of 2020, while Amazon shares have less than doubled.

As Bezos edges closer to Musk's wealth, the race for the title of the world's richest person intensifies. With the ongoing fluctuations in stock prices and the fortunes of these tech moguls, the rankings are sure to continue evolving in the dynamic landscape of wealth accumulation.

Read the original article on Business Insider.

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By: tmohamed@insider.com (Theron Mohamed)
Title: Jeff Bezos is Close to Overtaking Elon Musk as the World’s Richest Person
Sourced From: www.businessinsider.com/jeff-bezos-elon-musk-net-worth-wealth-amazon-tesla-stock-2024-2
Published Date: Tue, 06 Feb 2024 09:37:03 +0000