Elon Musk, CEO of Tesla, stands at the Tesla Gigafactory construction site in Grünheide near Berlin, September 3, 2020.
Patrick Pleul | photo alliance | Getty Images
Elon Musk just became the richest person in the world, with a net worth of over $ 185 billion.
The rise in Tesla’s stock price on Thursday pushed Musk past Jeff Bezos, who has been the richest person since 2017 and is currently worth about $ 184 billion. Musk’s surge in wealth over the past year marks the fastest rise to the top of the rich list in history – and marks a dramatic financial turnaround for the celebrity entrepreneur who made headlines just 18 months ago for Tesla’s rapid cash burn. and his personal influence against Tesla’s stock.
Musk started 2020 with a value of about $ 27 billion and was barely in the top 50 richest people.
Tesla’s sky-high stock price – which has risen more than nine-fold in the past year – along with its generous compensation package, added more than $ 150 billion to its net worth.
Meanwhile, Amazon’s stock price has remained more subdued due to the potential for more regulation from Washington.
Elon Musk passed Warren Buffett in July, becoming the seventh richest person. In November, Musk ran past Bill Gates to become the second richest person. Musk has amassed more wealth in the past 12 months than Bill Gates’ total net worth of $ 132 billion.
Tesla’s stock recently traded at around $ 790, up more than 4% during Thursday’s trading. The company’s market value has grown to $ 737.6 billion.