Musk and Zuckerberg lead a wave of $852 billion among the richest people in the world
The 500 richest people in the world added $852 billion to their fortunes in the first half of 2023.
Each member of the Bloomberg Billionaires Index earned an average of $14 million a day over the past six months, according to data compiled by Bloomberg. It was the best half year for billionaires since the second half of 2020 as the economy bounced back from a COVID-induced slump.
The gains coincided with a broad stock market rally as investors dismissed the effects of central bank rate hikes, the ongoing war in Ukraine and a crisis in regional banks. The S&P 500 rose 16% and the Nasdaq 100 rose 39% for its best first half ever as investor mania over artificial intelligence boosted technology stocks.
While Elon Musk and Mark Zuckerberg flirted with planning a cage match, the CEO of Tesla Inc. ranked best in dollars. Musk, the world’s richest person, added $96.6 billion to his net worth this year through June 30, while CEO of Meta Platforms Inc. Zuckerberg earned $58.9 billion.
Gautam Adani’s net worth fell the most in the six-month period, losing $60.2 billion. Adani, chairman of the Adani Group, also posted the largest single-day loss of any billionaire, with a loss of about $20.8 billion on Jan. 27, after short seller Hindenburg Research accused his conglomerate of accounting fraud and stock manipulation – an allegation that Adam denies.
Hindenburg, founded by Nate Anderson, also knocked over the fortune of another billionaire: Carl Icahn. His LP of Icahn Enterprises saw its biggest one-day drop after Hindenburg announced it was shorting the stock, saying the stock was significantly overvalued relative to its holdings. Icahn’s net worth fell $13.4 billion, or 57% — the largest percentage drop of any member of the Bloomberg Billionaires Index in the period.
For Musk, the capital gains spilled over in July as Tesla shares rose 6.9% in New York on Monday, adding an additional $13 billion to his fortune.
