Six months ago, Bernard Arnault was a lot less rich.
The 70-year-old LVMH CEO was the fourth-richest person alive at the start of 2019, according to Bloomberg. Since then, Arnault has made so much money that he displaced both Warren Buffett and Bill Gates to rank second on both Bloomberg’s Billionaires Index and Forbes Billionaires List.
Most of Arnault’s wealth comes from the 41% stake in LVMH he controls through his company Christian Dior, according to his profile in the Bloomberg’s Billionaires Index. LVMH shares are up over 50% in 2019 so far, according to Forbes.
Here are five facts that put into perspective exactly how fast Arnault’s fortune has grown.
1. In January 2019, Arnault was ranked No. 4 on the lists of the world’s richest people. Fast forward six months to mid-July, and he’s jumped two major spots, up to No. 2.
In January, Arnault was ranked fourth in both Bloomberg’s Billionaires Index and Forbes Billionaires List, behind Warren Buffett, Bill Gates, and Jeff Bezos.
His net worth was $US68.6 billion on January 1, according to Bloomberg.
Now, it’s $US108 billion, according to Bloomberg.
2. In the first three months of 2019, Arnault added over $US14 billion to his net worth — roughly the equivalent of drug lord El Chapo’s entire empire.
By March, Arnault had already added over $US14 billion to his net worth, pushing his net worth ahead of Buffett’s according to Bloomberg.
Law enforcement estimates that El Chapo’s entire drug empire is worth $US14 billion, Business Insider previously reported.
3. Arnault is officially one of only six people to ever rank No. 2 on Forbes’ list of the richest billionaires.
In July, Arnault overtook Bill Gates to become the second-richest person in the world, Business Insider reported.
Arnault is now one of only six people to ever hold one of the top two spots on Forbes’ billionaires list, according to the magazine. The others are Bezos, Gates, Buffett, Zara cofounder Amancio Ortega, and Mexican telecom magnate Carlos Slim Helu.
4. Arnault has made more money in 2019 than anyone else listed in the Bloomberg Billionaires Index, Bloomberg reported.
Arnault has made $US39 billion so far in 2019, according to the Bloomberg Billionaires Index.
Bill Gates, for comparison, who currently sits in spot No. 3, has made $US16 billion so far in 2019. And Jeff Bezos, who holds onto his spot as No. 1, has lost about $US1 billion, according to the Index.
5. Arnault’s personal wealth gains so far in 2019 are on par with Apple’s App Store and Google Play combined revenue so far in 2019.
Arnault’s wealth has increased by $US39 billion so far in 2019. That’s equivalent to Apple’s App Store and Google Play combined revenue in the first half of 2019, as reported by TechCrunch.
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