Bill Gates out, Bernard Arnault in: LVMH boss takes second-richest billionaire in the world spot
- Boss of luxury goods maker sees net worth rise to US$107 billion – US$200 million more than Microsoft co-founder, according to Bloomberg Billionaires Index
Bill Gates has never been ranked lower than No 2 in the seven-year history of the Bloomberg Billionaires Index.
However, that run ended on Tuesday when the Microsoft co-founder dropped to No 3 behind the new No 2, France’s Bernard Arnault, chairman and CEO of the luxury goods maker, LVMH Moët Hennessy.
Bernard Arnault’s net worth has risen to US$107.6 billion – ahead of Bill Gates by more than US$200 million
LVMH enjoyed record profits in 2018 with revenue of €46.8 billion (US$52.5 billion) – an increase of 10 per cent over the previous year.
This has pushed Arnault’s net worth to US$107.6 billion – ahead of Gates by more than US$200 million.
Arnault has added US$39 billion to his fortune in 2019 alone, the biggest individual gain by far among the 500 people in Bloomberg’s ranking.
This year has been particularly good to French tycoons, with Bernard Arnault, Kering’s Francois Pinault and cosmetics heir Francoise Bettencourt Meyers tacking on a combined US$57 billion
Arnault, 70, joined Gates and Amazon.com founder Jeff Bezos, the world’s richest person, in the most exclusive wealth club last month, when his fortune surpassed US$100 billion for the first time.
The trio’s collective wealth exceeds the individual market values of almost every company in the S&P 500 Index, including Walmart ExxonMobil and Walt Disney.
This year has been particularly good to French tycoons, with Arnault, Kering’s Francois Pinault and cosmetics heir Francoise Bettencourt Meyers tacking on a combined US$57 billion.
Arnault and his family are among luxury titans who pledged more than US$650 million in April for the reconstruction of Notre Dame Cathedral after fire ravaged the landmark church.