Jeff Bezos ousts Elon Musk as ‘richest person on Earth’ once again

In the latest battle of the richest, Amazon founder Jeff Bezos has once again become the “richest person on Earth”, surpassing Elon Musk and claiming the top spot on the Bloomberg Billionaires Index.

As of Monday, Bezos’ net worth was $200 billion, while Musk followed closely behind with $198 billion.

It’s worth noting that the Tesla CEO has lost around $31 billion over the past year, while Bezos has gained $23 billion, according to the index. On Monday, Tesla shares took a hit, tumbling more than 7%, CNN reported.

Musk had previously reclaimed the title of the world’s richest person in May 2023, edging out Moët Hennessy Louis Vuitton (LVMH) CEO Bernard Arnault, who runs one of the world’s largest conglomerates that includes renowned brands like Louis Vuitton, Dior, and Celine.

Musk, Arnault, and Bezos — the three centibillionaires —  have been in fierce competition for the top spot in the luxury goods industry, with Arnault’s wealth increasing due to a surge in luxury goods sales that helped drive up LVMH’s stock price.

Earlier this year, a Delaware court threw out Musk’s $50 billion 2018 pay package, which made him one of the world’s richest individuals, leading to a 24% year-to-date Tesla share decline.

The title of richest person on Earth changes every few months based on how the market is doing.

Musk and Arnault continue to be extremely wealthy.

According to Oxfam’s annual inequality report, since 2020, the combined net worth of the world’s five richest persons has increased by 114%, or $869 billion, after accounting for inflation.