Washington: Amazon CEO Jeff Bezos is the richest person today after his net worth cracked $150 billion. He topped this milestone on the same day as the company began its global shopping sale event, Amazon Prime Day Sale.
According to Bloomberg Billionaires Index, his network is about $55 billion more than Microsoft co-founder Bill Gates, the world’s second-richest person. In 1999, his total net worth briefly hit the $100 billion mark, which would be worth about $149 billion today in inflation-adjusted terms.
The reportadded that Amazon’s Chief Executive Officer is richer than anyone else on Earth since at least 1982. This was the year, Forbes starting publishing its inaugural wealth ranking.
In March this year, Bezos had dislodged Warren Buffett as the third-richest person globally with an estimated worth of $65.3 billion, said Forbes real-time wealth tracker. Buffett’s worth was pegged at $64.9 billion. “Bezos has seen his fortune swell on Amazon’s success and the 52-year-old has surpassed Warren Buffett as the third-richest person on the planet,” Forbes said. Amazon has reported robust second-quarter earnings, with the company posting a profit of $857 million; significantly up from $92 million a year ago.
E-commerce major Amazon has also pumped in Rs 230 crore in its Indian payments arm, Amazon Pay, as it looks to strengthen its operations in the country and compete head-on with the likes of Flipkart’s PhonePe and Alibaba-backed Paytm in India.
Amazon, which is competing with homegrown rival Flipkart in the Indian market, has pumped in substantial funding across operations to expand its operations in the country and build delivery infrastructure. Its founder, Jeff Bezos has committed an investment of $5 billion in the Indian market.
The competition is set to intensify following US retailer Walmart announcing a $16 billion deal last month to acquire about 77 percent stake in Flipkart (registered in Singapore). Reports said Amazon is looking at ramping up its investment here by as much as $2 billion, giving the India unit more ammunition. The company, however, has not commented on these reports.