The world's 500 richest lost 2.1% of their collective net worth on Monday as U.S. stocks crashed their biggest drop this year. As many as twenty-one people of the Bloomberg Billionaires Index lost $1 billion or more as investors reacted to heightened tensions between the U.S. and China.
The founder of Amazon.com Inc. Jef Bezos declined the most, shedding $3.4 billion as shares of the online retailer tumbled. Yet, he’s the richest man in the world with $110 billion. The loss is shockingly a sudden reversal for the world’s richest, who until now had experienced slow and steady gains. Alongside, other powers have also shrunk in recent weeks.
On the other hand, Hong Kong’s elite are also feeling the pain since nine weeks of protests that have squeezed the financial strength. To our surprise, the net worth of the 10 richest magnets who earn their fortunes from Hong Kong-listed companies has tumbled $19 billion since July 23. Despite this financial crash the 500 persons listed on the index control almost $5.4 trillion.
