THE CHANGING FORTUNE OF THE RICHEST IN THE WORLD
TEven as growing fears about the coronavirus halted the stock market this week, some of the world’s richest people still got much richer. In the week spanning Thursday, June 18 through Thursday, June 25, as the S&P 500 remained virtually flat, the fortune of 10 billionaires skyrocketed by $ 23 billion, as some stocks continue to rise despite widespread economic uncertainty.
The biggest winner in the last week is no stranger to the title. The world’s richest man, Jeff Bezos, is more than $ 50 billion richer than he was in February, before the coronavirus-fueled uncertainty sank stocks globally. This week alone, Bezos’ net worth rose $ 5.6 billion, ending Thursday at $ 164.5 billion. Amazon shares continued their month rip this week, rising 4% and reaching another all-time high on Tuesday, after the company announced a $ 2 billion venture capital fund, called the Climate Pledge Fund, to invest in companies that are helping to reduce carbon emissions. Bezos’s ex-wife MacKenzie has also been among the biggest winners during the pandemic, thanks to her roughly 4% stake in Amazon. Her fortune, now $ 53.9 billion, increased by $ 2 billion this week, making her the second richest woman in the world, surpassing Alice Walton, the daughter of Walmart founder Sam Walton, to take the number 2 spot. behind L’Oreal’s heir, Françoise Bettencourt Meyers, who is worth $ 62.3 billion.
Meanwhile, Ma Huateng, president of Shenzhen-based Internet monolith Tencent, made $ 3.4 billion over the past week, increasing his fortune to $ 54.6 billion. Beat Jack Ma, co-founder and former CEO of Chinese e-commerce giant Alibaba Group. Jack Ma’s net worth fell by $ 244 million this week, ending at $ 44.3 billion when Tencent overtook Alibaba to become China’s most valuable public company, with a market capitalization of nearly $ 603 billion. Ma Huateng is one of four Chinese tycoons among this week’s biggest winners.
In percentage terms, the biggest winner of the week is Russian investor Suleiman Kerimov, whose fortune increased by $ 1.3 billion, or almost 9%, thanks to the 78% stake that he and his family have in the largest producer of Russian gold, Polyus. Although the shares are still below their all-time high in April, Polyus shares rose 11% this week as it recovers from the aftermath of a bearish first-quarter earnings report released on June 1. The company said it may need to lower its production targets for 2020 after employees of a key business unit operating three mines in Siberia tested positive for Covid-19. Kerimov ended the week worth $ 16.7 billion.
Other top winners include LVMH leader Bernard Arnault, whose fortune rose $ 1.7 billion to $ 104.1 billion, but still lags behind January’s highs, and tech titan Michael Dell. Shares of its Dell Technologies rose more than 8% this week, reaching its highest levels since mid-February, after reports that the company could spin off its $ 50 billion stake in software company VMware. Dell ended the week $ 1.6 billion richer, worth $ 31.6 billion.
HERE IS THE 10 BILLION WHEN THE FORTUNE JUMPED THE MOST THIS WEEK.
The change in equity is from Thursday, June 18 to Thursday, June 25
NET WORTH The | $ 164.5 BILLION, UP TO $ 5.6 BILLION
COUNTRY The | U.S
RICHNESS’ FOUNTAIN The | AMAZON
NET WORTH The | $ 54.6 BILLION, UP TO $ 3.4 BILLION
COUNTRY The | CHINA
RICHNESS’ FOUNTAIN The | INTERNET MEDIA
NET WORTH The | $ 63.5 BILLION, UP TO $ 3.7 BILLION
COUNTRY The | INDIA
RICHNESS’ FOUNTAIN The | PETROCHEMICALS, OIL AND GAS
NET WORTH The | $ 54 BILLION, UP TO $ 2 BILLION
COUNTRY The | U.S
RICHNESS’ FOUNTAIN The | ELECTRONIC COMMERCE
NET WORTH The | $ 44.6 BILLION, UP TO $ 1.9 BILLION
COUNTRY The | CHINA
RICHNESS’ FOUNTAIN The | AMAZON
NET WORTH The | $ 104.1 BILLION, UP TO $ 1.7 BILLION
COUNTRY The | FRANCE
RICHNESS’ FOUNTAIN The | LVMH
NET WORTH The | $ 31.6 BILLION, UP TO $ 1.6 BILLION
COUNTRY The | U.S
RICHNESS’ FOUNTAIN The | DELL COMPUTERS
NET WORTH The | $ 26.7 BILLION, UP TO $ 1.6 BILLION
COUNTRY The | CHINA
RICHNESS’ FOUNTAIN The | ONLINE GAMES
NET WORTH The | $ 33.5 BILLION, UP TO $ 1.4 BILLION
COUNTRY The | CHINA
RICHNESS’ FOUNTAIN The | PIG RAISING
NET WORTH The | $ 16.7 BILLION, UP TO $ 1.3 BILLION
COUNTRY The | RUSSIA
RICHNESS’ FOUNTAIN The | INVESTMENTS
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