The world’s wealthiest 500 individuals saw their collective net worth soar to an unprecedented $10 trillion in 2024, with Elon Musk, Mark Zuckerberg, and Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang leading the surge, according to Bloomberg.
This dramatic growth was driven by a robust rally in US technology stocks, a post-election market boost, and an increase in central bank policies favoring asset growth.
Musk’s wealth skyrocketed by $213 billion this year, reaching $442.1 billion, solidifying his position as the world’s richest person. The gap between Musk and Jeff Bezos, the second wealthiest, widened to $237 billion in December, marking the largest recorded disparity between the top two billionaires.
Musk’s gains were attributed to the rising valuation of Tesla, SpaceX, and xAI, boosted by his close ties to the U.S. President-elect Donald Trump, whose administration is expected to implement policies favorable to Musk’s business ventures.
Globally, the S&P 500 Index gained 24% in 2024, with tech giants including Tesla, Meta, and Nvidia driving more than half of the benchmark’s performance. Zuckerberg, whose company Meta Platforms saw a 70% stock increase, added $81 billion to his net worth despite a significant $841 million fine from the European Union for antitrust violations. Nvidia’s Huang saw his wealth grow by $76 billion as the company became the most valuable in the world, capitalizing on the AI boom.
Meanwhile, Trump’s election victory in November spurred an immediate market rally, with the S&P 500 hitting a record high. The election also catalyzed a historic surge in digital assets, with Bitcoin crossing the $100,000 mark for the first time, boosting the fortunes of cryptocurrency billionaires like Binance CEO Changpeng Zhao, whose wealth rose by 60% to $55 billion.
Not all sectors fared equally well. French luxury billionaires, including Bernard Arnault, faced significant losses due to slowing sales in China, collectively losing $71 billion.
Mexican billionaire Carlos Slim’s fortune declined by $26 billion, impacted by a weaker peso and market volatility following a leftist presidential victory in Mexico.
Vietnamese tycoon Pham Nhat Vuong also saw his net worth nearly halved due to setbacks in his electric vehicle company, Vinfast Auto.
The Bloomberg Billionaires Index, which tracks the wealth of the 500 richest individuals, highlighted a 43% increase in the combined wealth of tech billionaires alone, amounting to $600 billion of the total $1.5 trillion increase.
Young billionaires under 60 outpaced their older counterparts, with their collective net worth growing at twice the rate of those over 60.
Despite these record-breaking gains, some industries faced challenges. The luxury goods sector, which experienced rapid growth during the pandemic, saw a decline as consumer spending shifted, particularly in China.
Similarly, sectors like Latin American telecoms and Vietnamese property faced setbacks due to political and market uncertainties.
As the year closed, the combined wealth of the world’s billionaires reflected an amount equivalent to the GDPs of Germany, Japan, and Australia combined, underscoring the stark concentration of global wealth.
With economic uncertainties, geopolitical shifts, and evolving markets, analysts predict continued volatility for 2025, but billionaire fortunes are likely to remain a key barometer of economic trends.
