Amazon CEO Jeff Bezos Lost $8 Billion In Two Days
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Jeff Bezos, the richest person in the world, lost $8 billion over the course of two days.
The Amazon CEO’s net worth is currently sitting at a cool $176 billion. Earlier this month, he broke the barrier of his pre-divorce wealth at $171.6 billion; every increase from here is a new record.
However, amid the shuffling financial storm of the pandemic, gargantuan sums of money can be lost, found, lost and found again – and that’s just a normal weekday. As unfathomable as the prospect is, Bezos won’t be sweating.
Between July 10-14, Bezos’s wealth nosedived by 4.4%, equating to an $8 billion drop in his fortune, Forbes reports. How could this happen? According to investors, they’re ‘mostly chalking it up to portfolio rebalancing, or momentum stocks retreating a bit after a strong run’.
Amazon is hardly struggling; think of the mass increase in online shopping this year, with people more comfortable ordering food, clothes and everything else from the comfort of their home.
Bezos has noticed, and the cash is rolling in. Since March 18, the e-commerce behemoth’s stock price has soared an eye-watering 69%, with its market cap reaching a record $1.5 trillion.
Bezos owns 11% of Amazon’s stock, which has enabled his fortune to rise by $68 billion throughout 2020, even after giving $36 billion in stock to ex-wife Mackenzie Bezos as part of a divorce settlement last year.
According to Bloomberg’s Billionaires Index, Mackenzie is now the second-richest woman in the world, with a wealth of $58.6 billion. She’s just behind L’Oreal heiress Francoise Bettencourt Meyers, who’s worth $66.3 billion.
Further down the rich list, Tesla CEO Elon Musk sits at number 10 for the first time in his life, with a net worth of $68.7 billion. His wealth has almost tripled since March, when his fortune sat at $24.6 billion, following a 320% rally in the company’s stock.
Earlier this month, Musk told Forbes: ‘I really couldn’t care less. Those numbers rise and fall, but what really matters is making great products that people love.’
Mukesh Ambani has also been climbing the rankings, currently at number eight with a net worth of $71.6 billion. The Indian figurehead has seen massive investment in his telecom firm Reliance Jo, with Facebook contributing $5.7 billion and Google recently pledging $4.5 billion.
Former Microsoft CEO Steve Ballmer has also penetrated the top five. Over the past few months, the tech giant’s stock has soared by 47%, leaving Ballmer with a cosy $73.2 billion.
While I may weep over losing £20, $8 billion is just a minor speed-bump for Bezos.
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Topics: News, Amazon, Billionaires, Bloomberg Billionaires Index, Jeff Bezos, Now, Rich List, US
