Tesla CEO Elon Musk. , Photo Credit: Reuters
After a brief slip, Tesla CEO Elon Musk has regained the title of richest person on the planet as of the morning of February 28, according to the Bloomberg Billionaires Index.
Mr Musk was defeated last December by Bernard Arnault, the owner of French luxury brand Louis Vuitton. But a surge in Tesla’s share price after the market closed on Monday reversed the situation and helped Mr Musk climb back to the top spot. Elon Musk is now worth $187 billion according to the index, surpassing Mr Arnault’s $185 billion personal fortune.
Between November 2021 and December last year, Mr Musk’s wealth fell by more than $200 billion due to a sharp drop in Tesla shares – making Mr Musk the first person to lose that much wealth. The Tesla chief’s net worth is set to fall from $340 billion in November 2021 to $137 billion in December 2022. This was about the time Mr. Musk took over. Twitter after a contentious legal battle And COVID-19 had started to surge again in China. Tesla lost nearly $700 billion on Wall Street due to investor fears.
Twitter recently announced that it is cutting more than 3,700 jobs at the company – nearly half of the workforce – following the acquisition to further reduce costs.