Elon Musk tops list of world’s Richest people with $96.6bn Gain

The world’s 500 richest people added $852 billion to their fortunes in the first half of 2023, with Elon Musk coming on top, adding another $96.6 billion to his net worth.

The world’s 500 richest people added $852 billion to their fortunes in the first half of 2023, with Elon Musk coming on top, adding another $96.6 billion to his net worth.

This was also one of the best half-years for billionaires since the back half of 2020 when the economy rebounded from a Covid-induced slump, Bloomberg reported.

The gains coincided with a broad stock market rally, as investors brushed off the effects of central bank interest rate hikes, the ongoing war in Ukraine and a crisis in regional banks.

The S&P 500 rose 16 percent and the Nasdaq 100 surged 39 percent for its best-ever first half as investor mania over artificial intelligence boosted tech stocks.

Daily gains: Richest People’s Wealth

Each member of the Bloomberg Billionaires Index made an average of $14 million per day over the past six months, according to data compiled by Bloomberg.

Musk was followed by Mark Zuckerberg, the Meta Platforms Inc. CEO, who gained $58.9 billion in H1, 2023.

Controversy-hit Indian billionaire businessman Gautam Adani was the biggest loser during this period, with his net worth sinking by $60.2 billion.

Adani, chairman of Adani Group, also posted the biggest one-day loss of any billionaire, shedding about $20.8 billion on January 27, after short-seller Hindenburg Research accused his conglomerate of accounting fraud and stock manipulation – a claim Adani denies.

Hindenburg, founded by Nate Anderson, also knocked down the net worth of another billionaire: Carl Icahn. His Icahn Enterprises LP had its steepest one-day drop after Hindenburg disclosed it was shorting the shares, saying the stock was significantly overvalued relative to its holdings. Icahn’s net worth fell $13.4 billion, or 57 percent – the largest percentage drop of any member of the Bloomberg Billionaires Index in the period.

For Musk, the wealth gains also spilled over into July as Tesla shares climbed 6.9 percent on Monday in New York, tacking on an additional $13 billion to his fortune.