Richest 500 people rebound with $1.5 trillion gain in 2023
The world's 500 wealthiest individuals saw their combined net worth skyrocket by $1.5 trillion in 2023, according to the Bloomberg Billionaires Index. This impressive growth was fueled by a 48% increase in tech billionaires' fortunes, totaling $658 billion, largely due to the excitement surrounding artificial intelligence. Elon Musk reclaimed his position as the world's richest person from Bernard Arnault, CEO of French conglomerate LVMH. Musk's net worth now surpasses Arnault's by over $50 billion.
Musk, Bezos, and Zuckerberg see massive wealth increases
Musk's fortune grew by a staggering $95.4 billion in 2023, thanks to the success of both Tesla and SpaceX. Meanwhile, Amazon founder Jeff Bezos added more than $70 billion to his wealth, putting him in close competition with Arnault for second place. Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg saw his net worth jump by over $80 billion. However, Indian billionaire Gautam Adani experienced a loss of $37.3 billion after Hindenburg Research negatively impacted the value of the Adani Group.
L'Oreal heiress became the first woman to reach $100B fortune
Miriam Adelson, the majority shareholder of Las Vegas Sands Corp. watched her net worth rise to $34.3 billion. This was after purchasing a $3.5 billion majority stake in the Dallas Mavericks and supporting Republican presidential candidate Nikki Haley. Francoise Bettencourt Meyers, the heir to the L'Oreal fortune, became the first woman to achieve a 12-figure net worth as her fortune surged 40% this year, thanks to L'Oreal's shares hitting a record high.
Activist investor Carl Icahn experienced a rough year
Steve Cohen, founder of Point72 Asset Management, saw his wealth increase to $13.9 billion in 2023. Mark Cuban's fortune also grew to $6.8 billion after selling the Dallas Mavericks to Miriam Adelson for $3.5 billion. Activist investor Carl Icahn faced a difficult year, losing $18.1 billion from his fortune due to Hindenburg Research's influence. Despite this setback, Icahn plans to initiate a proxy battle to gain control of Illumina Inc.'s board.
Masayoshi Son, Donald Trump, and Changpeng Zhao face challenges
Masayoshi Son, founder of SoftBank Group, experienced a decline in his wealth to $11.4 billion following WeWork's collapse. Former president Donald Trump's net worth increased by $500 million since 2021, reaching $3.1 billion, but he faces legal challenges in 2024 while running for president. Binance founder Changpeng "CZ" Zhao's wealth expanded by nearly $25 billion. This is despite pleading guilty to money laundering and US sanctions violations and having to pay a $50 million personal fine.
