It’s been one month since stocks bottomed out following the unprecedented economic shutdown forced by the coronavirus pandemic. And although they’re still lagging below February highs, the Dow Jones Industrial Average and the S&P 500 have each bounced back about 25% since March 23, when both hit a mid-pandemic low. As markets recover from the early tumult, the fortunes of the top 10 billionaire gainers have bounced back as well, jumping a massive $125.9 billion, or 24%, in the month ending April 23.
Most of the month’s biggest gainers are the tycoons behind some of the world’s largest technology companies, who have reaped the benefits of large, concentrated stakes in rising big tech stocks.
Thanks to his 11% stake in Amazon, the world’s richest man, Jeff Bezos, is the month’s biggest gainer. Though Amazon shares have tapered off from record prices last week, as worker protests for better working conditions garner increased attention, the firm’s still booming from surging consumer demand. Bezos, worth $144.5 billion, is now nearly as rich as he was before his 2019 divorce forced him to give a quarter of his Amazon stake to his ex-wife MacKenzie Bezos. She’s now richer than ever too, worth $47.1 billion—up $9.7 billion over the past month, and good for the seventh-largest gain among billionaires.
A further testament to the power of big tech, India’s richest man, Mukesh Ambani, is the second-biggest gainer in dollar terms (and the largest percentage-wise) after Facebook announced Wednesday that it’s investing $5.7 billion in Mumbai-based Reliance Jio, a telecom subsidiary of the sprawling conglomerate founded by Ambani’s late father. Shares of Reliance Industries have soared more than 15% since, and Ambani’s fortune has jumped by $17.1 billion. The investment has made Ambani, who’s now worth $49.9 billion, Asia’s richest person once again, taking the title from Alibaba cofounder Jack Ma.
On the other end of the deal, Mark Zuckerberg is the month’s third-biggest gainer. In line with the broader market, shares of Facebook have risen 25% over the past month, pushing up Zuckerberg’s fortune by $13.4 billion; he’s now worth $68.5 billion.
Despite massive gains among these tycoons, only Jeff and MacKenzie Bezos are worth more than before the coronavirus rout tanked fortunes. The only other one to come close: Oracle chairman Larry Ellison. Recent analyst upgrades have lauded Oracle for its strong recurring revenue streams, helping drive Ellison’s fortune up by $9.3 billion over the past month. He’s now worth $65.3 billion, just shy of the $66 billion he was worth in mid-February.
Here are the world’s 10 biggest billionaire gainers over the past month:
Jeff Bezos
Source of wealth: Amazon
Country: U.S.
Net worth: $144.5 billion, up $27.5 billion
Mukesh Ambani
Source of wealth: Petrochemicals, oil & gas
Country: India
Net worth: $49.9 billion, up $17.1 billion
Mark Zuckerberg
Source of wealth: Facebook
Country: U.S.
Net worth: $68.5 billion, up $13.4 billion
Steve Ballmer
Source of wealth: Microsoft
Country: U.S.
Net worth: $61.9 billion, up $10.5 billion
Bernard Arnault & family
Source of wealth: LVMH
Country: France
Net worth: $91.5 billion, up $10.2 billion
Warren Buffett
Source of wealth: Berkshire Hathaway
Country: U.S.
Net worth: $73.3 billion, up $10.1 billion
MacKenzie Bezos
Source of wealth: Amazon
Country: U.S.
Net worth: $47.1 billion, $9.7 billion
Elon Musk
Source of wealth: Tesla
Country: U.S.
Net worth: $36.7 billion, up $9.6 billion
Larry Ellison
Source of wealth: Software
Country: U.S.
Net worth: $65.3 billion, up $9.3 billion
Larry Page
Source of wealth: Google
Country: U.S.
Net worth: $58.1 billion, up $8.7 billion.
