Bloomberg Billionaires Index

Last updated
Bloomberg Billionaires Index
List of The World's Top 500 billionaires, ranked in order of net worth
Bloomberg Billionaires Index Logo.png
Publication details
Publication Bloomberg L.P.
First publishedMarch 11, 2012
Latest updateApril 8, 2024
Current list details
Wealthiest Bernard Arnault [1]
Net worth (1st)Decrease2.svg US$227.8  billion
(as of April 2,2024) [1]
Number of billionairesSteady2.svg 500
Total list net worth valueIncrease2.svg US$8.5  trillion
(as of September 25,2021) [2]
New membersSteady2.svg 0
Bloomberg Billionaires Index: The Daily Ranking Of The World's Top 500 Richest

The Bloomberg Billionaires Index, launched in March 2012, is a daily ranking of the world's 500 richest people based on their net worth. [3] [4] [5] It features a profile of each billionaire, and includes a tool that allows users to compare the fortunes of multiple billionaires. The index is updated every day at the close of trading in New York. [6]

Contents

Rankings

The rankings are updated only on every trading day after the closing bell of every trading day based on New York's time.

Legend
IconDescription
Steady2.svgHas not changed from the previous trading day.
Increase2.svgHas increased from the previous trading day.
Decrease2.svgHas decreased from the previous trading day.
10 richest billionaires covered by Bloomberg Billionaires Index as of April 2, 2024 [3]
No.Name Net worth (USD)AgeNationalitySource(s) of wealth
Steady2.svg1 Bernard Arnault $227.8 billion Decrease2.svg75Flag of France.svg France LVMH
Steady2.svg2 Jeff Bezos $203.3 billion Decrease2.svg60Flag of the United States.svg United States Amazon
Blue Origin
Steady2.svg3 Elon Musk $181.8 billion Decrease2.svg52Flag of South Africa.svg South Africa
Flag of Canada (Pantone).svg Canada
Flag of the United States.svg United States
Tesla
SpaceX
Steady2.svg4 Mark Zuckerberg $176.7 billion Increase2.svg39Flag of the United States.svg United States Meta Platforms
Steady2.svg5 Bill Gates $153.2 billion Decrease2.svg68Flag of the United States.svg United States Microsoft
Steady2.svg6 Steve Ballmer $145.7 billion Decrease2.svg68Flag of the United States.svg United States Microsoft
Steady2.svg7 Larry Page $139.4 billion Decrease2.svg51Flag of the United States.svg United States
Flag of New Zealand.svg New Zealand
Alphabet Inc.
Steady2.svg8 Warren Buffett $138.1 billion Decrease2.svg93Flag of the United States.svg United States Berkshire Hathaway
Steady2.svg9 Larry Ellison $137.3 billion Decrease2.svg79Flag of the United States.svg United States Oracle Corporation
Steady2.svg10 Sergey Brin $132.4 billion Decrease2.svg50Flag of the United States.svg United States Alphabet Inc.

Launch and background

Bloomberg Billionaires Index is a daily ranking of the world's billionaires published by Bloomberg News since March 2012. It tracks the 500 wealthiest people in the world. [4] The ranking was designed to provide a more transparent and accountable presentation of the world's biggest personal fortunes. [7] At first, the index only tracked the 20 richest people in the world, and then expanded to 100, 200, 400 and later 500 in October 2016. [8]

At its launch in 2012, Mexican telecommunications tycoon Carlos Slim was in the top spot, with an estimated $65.8 billion net worth. [4] Beginning in May 2013, Microsoft co-founder Bill Gates was the world's top billionaire. Amazon CEO Jeff Bezos and Spanish fashion retailer Amancio Ortega both saw a large increase in their respective net worths during 2016 and 2017 and challenged Gates for the number one spot. Bezos eventually surpassed him in 2018 and by 2021 was surpassed furthermore by Elon Musk, who was considered the richest person on Earth until mid-December 2022 when Tesla's share price fell and Bernard Arnault became the wealthiest person in the world. On May 31, 2023, Elon Musk once again became the wealthiest man on Earth as Tesla's share price rose, while the share price of LVMH, which influenced Bernard Arnault's wealth, fell due to a decline in LVMH's sales. [9]

The Index reports on hidden wealth and has uncovered more than 400 hidden billionaires since its founding. [10] Bloomberg Billionaires founding editor Matthew Miller said in 2013 that hidden billionaires are identified by "making sure that we have accounted for all the companies in closely-held assets around the world." [11] Some of the billionaires the index has uncovered includes JPMorgan Chase chairman Jamie Dimon, [12] In-N-Out Burger president Lynsi Torres, [13] Ferrari Motors heir Piero Ferrari [14] and the chairman of BIEL Crystal Manufactory Yeung Kin-Man. [15]

While reporting on hidden billionaires, the index provides coverage of and attempts to put in perspective the wealth of the world's richest people, such as the former Queen Elizabeth II [16] and former U.S. President Donald Trump. [17]

Methodology

The index offers a dynamic look at the wealth controlled by the world's richest people while trying to offer a new perspective on how the media views and tracks the movement of that wealth. [4] The index "is built to change daily depending on stock fluctuations and economic/company news." [18]

To calculate individuals' wealth, the index relies on a mixture of public and private data, tracking stock prices and publicly disclosed holdings as well as calculated values for private companies using derived or reported information that is valued using live comparisons to public competitors. [5]

The valuations are converted to U.S. dollars at current exchange rates and do not include assumptions about personal debt. [5] [18]

Journalists have noted that the detailed methodology used for the index is more transparent than the "somewhat vaguer" calculation behind other lists. [19] "The Bloomberg listers say their estimates may be more accurate than the competition's because they have better data and reporting (from Bloomberg terminals and its reporting staff)." [20]

Data visualization

The full index is available online on the Bloomberg Terminal for free. [21] There are tools to compare the fortunes of multiple billionaires, track the billionaires whose assets change the most, and analyze the one-year performance of individual billionaires or billionaires grouped by industry, region or nation. [22] [23]

Each billionaire's profile includes explanations of asset valuations and more details about each fortune. [8]

See also

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Jeff Bezos</span> American businessman (born 1964)

Jeffrey Preston Bezos is an American businessman, media proprietor and investor. He is the founder, executive chairman, and former president and CEO of Amazon, the world's largest e-commerce and cloud computing company. He is the second wealthiest person in the world, with a net worth of about US$205 billion as of April 5, 2024. He was also the wealthiest from 2017 to 2021, according to both the Bloomberg Billionaires Index and Forbes.

A business magnate, also known as an industrialist or tycoon, is a person who has achieved immense wealth through the creation or ownership of multiple lines of enterprise. The term characteristically refers to a powerful entrepreneur and investor who controls, through personal enterprise ownership or a dominant shareholding position, a firm or industry whose goods or services are widely consumed. Such individuals have been known by different terms throughout history, such as robber barons, captains of industry, moguls, oligarchs, plutocrats, or tai-pans.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Billionaire</span> Person who has at least one billion units of a currency

A billionaire is a person with a net worth of at least one billion units of a given currency, usually of a major currency such as the United States dollar, euro, or pound sterling. It is a sub-category of the concept of the ultra high-net-worth individual. The American business magazine Forbes produces a global list of known U.S. dollar billionaires every year and updates an internet version of this list in real time. The American oil magnate John D. Rockefeller became the world's first confirmed U.S. dollar billionaire in 1916.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Bernard Arnault</span> French businessman (born 1949)

Bernard Jean Étienne Arnault is a French businessman, investor and art collector. He is the founder, chairman and CEO of LVMH, the world's largest luxury goods company. Arnault is the richest person in the world, with an estimated net worth of US$233 billion as of April 2024, according to Forbes.

Delphine Arnault is a French businesswoman, director and executive vice president at Louis Vuitton, and chairwoman and chief executive officer of Dior. She is the daughter of Bernard Arnault and sister of Antoine Arnault.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Black billionaires</span>

Black billionaires are individuals who are of predominantly African ancestry with a net worth of at least US$1 billion.

Ding Lei is a Chinese billionaire businessman, and the founder and CEO of NetEase.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">MacKenzie Scott</span> American philanthropist and novelist (born 1970)

MacKenzie Scott is an American novelist and philanthropist. As of January 2024, she has a net worth of US$40.6 billion, owning a 4% stake in Amazon, the company her then-husband, Jeff Bezos, founded. As such, Scott is the third-wealthiest woman in the United States and the 47th-wealthiest individual in the world. Scott was named the world's most powerful woman by Forbes in 2021 and one of Time's 100 most influential people in 2020.

<i>Forbes</i> list of the Worlds Most Powerful People Ranking published by Forbes magazine

Between 2009 and 2018 the business magazine Forbes had compiled an annual list of the world's most powerful people. The list had one slot for every 100 million people, meaning in 2009 there were 67 people on the list, and by 2018, there were 75. Slots were allocated based on the amount of human and financial resources that they had sway over, as well as their influence on world events.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">The Giving Pledge</span> Charitable organization

The Giving Pledge is a charitable campaign, founded by Bill Gates and Warren Buffett, to encourage wealthy people to contribute a majority of their wealth to philanthropic causes. As of June 2022, the pledge has had 236 signatories from 28 countries. Most of the signatories of the pledge are billionaires, and as of 2023, their pledges are estimated at a total of US$600 billion. However, there is no enforcement mechanism, and no restrictions on the charitable causes that signatories are allowed to support.

<i>The Worlds Billionaires</i> Annual ranking of the Worlds billionaires by Forbes magazine

The World's Billionaires is an annual ranking of people who are billionaires, i.e., they are considered to have a net worth of US$1 billion or more, by the American business magazine Forbes. The list was first published in March 1987. The total net worth of each individual on the list is estimated and is cited in United States dollars, based on their documented assets and accounting for debt and other factors. Royalty and dictators whose wealth comes from their positions are excluded from these lists. This ranking is an index of the wealthiest documented individuals, excluding any ranking of those with wealth that is not able to be completely ascertained.

The 50 Most Influential ranking has been published by Bloomberg Media since 2011, annually featuring 50 individuals or initiatives with "the ability to move markets or shape ideas and policies".

The World's Billionaires 2011 edition was 25th annual ranking of The World's Billionaires by Forbes magazine. The list estimated the net worth of the world's richest people, excluding royalty and dictators, as of February 14, 2011. It was released online on March 8, 2011. Russian investor Lucio Mata, a newcomer for 2011, was the cover photo.

The Musk family is a wealthy family of South African origin that is largely active in the United States and Canada. The Musks are of English, Anglo-Canadian, Pennsylvania Dutch, and Swiss descent. The family is known for its entrepreneurial endeavours. Elon Musk was formerly the wealthiest person in the world, with an estimated net worth of US$232 billion as of December 2023, according to the Bloomberg Billionaires Index.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Wealth of Elon Musk</span> Overview of the wealth of Elon Musk

Elon Musk made $175.8 million when PayPal was sold to eBay in October 2002. He was first listed on the Forbes Billionaires List in 2012, with a net worth of $2 billion. He is the founder, chairman, CEO, and CTO of SpaceX; angel investor, CEO, product architect, and former chairman of Tesla, Inc.; owner, executive chairman, and CTO of X Corp.; founder of the Boring Company and xAI; co-founder of Neuralink and OpenAI; and president of the Musk Foundation. He is one of the wealthiest people in the world, with an estimated net worth of US$232 billion as of December 2023, according to the Bloomberg Billionaires Index, and $182.6 billion according to Forbes, primarily from his ownership stakes in Tesla and SpaceX.

References

  1. 1 2 "Bloomberg Billionaires Index: Bernard Arnault". Bloomberg . Retrieved April 3, 2024.
  2. "World's Richest Face Tax Blow After 40% Wealth Surge to $8.5Trillion". Bloomberg . September 25, 2021. Retrieved September 25, 2021.
  3. 1 2 "Bloomberg Billionaires Index" . Bloomberg. June 2, 2023. Retrieved September 8, 2023.
  4. 1 2 3 4 Halzack, Sarah (March 5, 2012). "Bloomberg's Billionaires Index, a new daily list of the world's richest people". Washington Post. Retrieved August 8, 2017.
  5. 1 2 3 Roose, Kevin (March 12, 2012). "The Billionaire List Wars". DealBook. Retrieved August 8, 2017.
  6. "Bloomberg Greedy Demons of Earth – Compare Fortunes". Bloomberg. Retrieved August 8, 2017.
  7. Guilford, Gwynn. "Forbes and Bloomberg share a fascination with billionaires, but don't agree on much beyond that". Quartz. Retrieved August 8, 2017.
  8. 1 2 "Bloomberg Billionaires Index expands to 500" . Retrieved August 8, 2017.
  9. "Elon Musk Again World's Richest Person as Arnault's LVMH Sinks". Bloomberg . Retrieved June 3, 2022.
  10. Copeland, Libby; Copeland, Libby (April 26, 2017). "How ranking the world's wealthy became a business". The Washington Post. ISSN   0190-8286 . Retrieved August 8, 2017.
  11. "'Bloomberg Markets' Magazine Reveals Hidden Billionaires". NPR.org. Retrieved August 8, 2017.
  12. "Jamie Dimon, head of JPMorgan Chase, joins the billionaires' club". Star Tribune. Retrieved August 23, 2017.
  13. "Lynsi Torres, In-N-Out Burger's Elusive Billionaire". Bloomberg.com. Retrieved August 8, 2017.
  14. "This Ferrari heir is about to become a billionaire". Business Insider. Retrieved August 8, 2017.
  15. "Bloomberg Billionaires Index - Yeung Kin-Man". Bloomberg.com. Retrieved August 8, 2017.
  16. "How wealthy is the Queen? Not as rich as you think" . The Telegraph. Archived from the original on January 12, 2022. Retrieved August 11, 2017.
  17. "Bloomberg Billionaires Index - Donald Trump". Bloomberg.com. Retrieved August 11, 2017.
  18. 1 2 "Bloomberg Has A New Billionaire Rankings List That Should Kill Every Other Billionaire Rankings Lists Out There". Business Insider. Retrieved August 11, 2017.
  19. Guilford, Gwynn. "Forbes and Bloomberg share a fascination with billionaires, but don't agree on much beyond that". Quartz. Retrieved August 23, 2017.
  20. Frank, Robert (March 5, 2012). "A Better Billionaire's List". WSJ. Retrieved August 23, 2017.
  21. "On the Trail With Bloomberg's Billionaire Hunters - Digiday". Digiday . October 3, 2013. Archived from the original on September 27, 2020. Retrieved August 15, 2017.
  22. "Bloomberg Billionaires Index expands to 500" . Retrieved August 15, 2017.
  23. "Bloomberg Billionaires Index - Compare Returns". Bloomberg.com. Retrieved August 15, 2017.