Jeff Bezos added £10.2 billion ($13 billion) to his net worth on Monday, the highest single-day earnings since records began.
According to the Bloomberg Billionaires Index, the Amazon boss is now worth a staggering £149 billion ($189.3 billion), while the economy in the US continues to shrink because of the pandemic.
Bezos, who founded online marketplace Amazon back in 1995, is on track to become the first ever trillionaire by 2026.
His business is now said to be one of the most valuable on the planet, and it’s not showing any signs of slowing.
But the news comes after it was revealed that his net worth dropped by £6.3bn ($8bn) , according to Forbes.
It’s a bit of a wedge to lose in just two working days – to put it into context, it’s the combined value of the NFL’s New England Patriots ($4.1bn/£3.2bn) and the New York Giants ($3.9bn/£3.1bn).
However, Amazon had been doing fairly well (that’s putting it lightly, let’s face it) in the months beforehand, investors weren’t concerned, with them ‘mostly chalking it up to portfolio rebalancing, or momentum stocks retreating a bit after a strong run’.
And it looks like they were right – seeing as he’s gone and added a further £3.9 billion ($5bn) on top of his loss.
“Since March 18, the date that Forbes used to calculate net worths for the 2020 World’s Billionaires list, and days after the President declared a national emergency due to the coronavirus, Amazon’s stock price has soared nearly 69 percent,” Forbes said.
“As shoppers who sheltered at home during the pandemic turned to Amazon for ordering more purchases, its market cap reached a record $1.5 trillion (£1.18 trillion), and Bezos’ fortune jumped $68 billion (£53.5 billion).”
He’s not the only business owner to prosper during the last few months.
Tesla and SpaceX CEO Elon Musk went from being the 31st wealthiest person in the world in mid-March to number nine as of Tuesday 14 July.
According to Forbes, his net worth has ‘nearly tripled’ in the last four months, from £19.4 billion ($24.6 billion) to £54.4 billion ($69.1 billion), which is thought to be ‘largely due to a massive 320% rally in Tesla’s stock’.
Speaking to Forbes earlier this month about the size of his fortune, Musk said: “I really couldn’t care less.
“Those numbers rise and fall, but what really matters is making great products that people love.”
I’m sure it is, Elon.
