SAN FRANCISCO, Jan 8 — Elon Musk, the founder of SpaceX and Tesla, has become the world's richest person, Xinhua news agency reported.
Musk was worth more than US$188 billion (RM760 billion) on Thursday morning, US$1.5 billion (RM6 billion) more than Jeff Bezos, the founder and CEO of Amazon, who held the world's wealthiest person position since 2017, according to Bloomberg Billionaire Index.
Musk reached the pinnacle thanks to Tesla's share price that has skyrocketed nearly 830 per cent since March 2020. Over the past year, his net worth soared by more than US$150 billion (RM606 billion).
Musk holds about 20 per cent equity in Tesla. He also has some US$42 billion (RM169.8 billion) in vested stock options, according to SEC filings.
Tesla shares climbed up 7.94 per cent on Thursday, reaching the price of US$816 (RM3,299) at the closing.
Musk tweeted "How strange," after reports of his new status came out, adding "Well, back to work."
— Bernama
