Jeff Bezos Becomes First Person in History to Reach $200 Billion Net Worth

(Photo : Photo by Alex Wong/Getty Images)
Amazon CEO Jeff Bezos participates in an event hosted by the Air Force Association September 19, 2018 in National Harbor, Maryland.

Jeff Bezos is now the richest man alive, as his net worth ballooned to more than $200 billion, according to the Bloomberg Billionaires Index.

Bezos' record-breaking net worth makes him the first person to cross the $200 billion threshold.

Bloomberg pegged Bezos' net worth at $202 billion, while Forbes estimated that he was now worth about $204 billion when the markets closed Wednesday.

He is now about $78 billion richer than Microsoft co-founder Bill Gates, who stands at number two. His current status is something that hasn't happened before, even when prices are adjusted for inflation, noted Business Insider.

Most Wealth Comes from Amazon

The Amazon founder's net worth, which is mostly from Amazon stock, soared in the recent years as the company also saw better financial standing, said CNBC.

Bezos became the world's richest man in recent history in 2018 after his wealth climbed over the $150 billion mark. His first time being the wealthiest person in the world was in 2017.

Amazon shares hit record high in April, as consumers had higher demand for the company's service. From there, stocks continued to rise.

Amazon experienced a surge in online sales as the COVID-19 pandemic took hold of the U.S. for months. More people turned to online shipping so they can stay home.

The change in consumer behavior sent the company's market capitalization through the roof.

It added billions to its market value and investors gained an increase of 86% so far this year. As of Wednesday, Amazon is worth more than $1.7 trillion. This makes it the second most valuable company in the U.S., next to Apple.

The company blew past Wall Street's expectations last quarter, with $5.2 billion in net profit. This is even after warning investors that it will spend all of the $4 billion it expected to make on COVID-19 related initiatives.

Bezos has roughly 11% at stake in Amazon, making up 90% of his fortune. He also owns Washington Post, aerospace company Blue Origin and other private entities.

Could've Been Richer

Forbes noted that Bezos would have been an even richer man, had he not gone through the "most expensive divorce settlement in history."

When he split with his ex-wife MacKenzie Scott last July, he agreed to give her 25% of his stake at Amazon. It is a large chunk of stock that is now worth $63 billion.

Scott may have given away about $1.7 billion in charitable gifts earlier this year, but she is still the world's 14th richest person and second richest woman. She is just trailing behind L'Oréal heiress Françoise Bettencourt Meyers.

Other Tech Titan's Net Worth Surges

Amazon isn't the only tech company to have seen better numbers amid the pandemic, and Bezos is not the only tech titan whose fortune surged to new heights.

Facebook's Mark Zuckerberg, for one, sustained his brand-new centibillionaire status on Tuesday. He ended that day worth $103.1 billion after adding $3.4 billion from Facebook stock gains.

The surge continued until Wednesday afternoon, after which Zuckerberg went up $6 billion, now worth $109.1 billion.

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