If you’re eyeballing the real-time list of the world’s billionaires, and holding out hope that you might someday catch Jeff Bezos, well, your chances got a little bit of a boost on Wednesday.
The Amazon CEO entered the day as the world’s richest person and he’ll end the day that way, too.
But thanks to a hefty tumble in Amazon stock, Bezos lost $5.2 billion. According to Forbes, the 4.2-percent drop put Bezos at a net worth of $118.9 billion. That still gives him a $29 billion edge over the No. 2 guy, Bill Gates.
Axios reported that the $31 billion loss for Amazon on Wednesday came on the heels of its report on how President Trump has it out for Bezos and the Seattle-based tech giant. The story said that Trump is “obsessed with Amazon” and is looking for a way to “clip Bezos’ wings,” perhaps with antitrust regulations. The White House said there are no new regulatory measures being put in place against Amazon.
But the stock fell more than 4 percent anyway, down to $1,431 per share.
And if you’re looking for just a little context for that $5 billion loss for Bezos (the first person to top $100 billion on Forbes’ list) … it’s what the company says it will spend to develop a second headquarters and employ 50,000 people in a yet-to-be-named city.
