However, it is Musk’s rise that has been particularly meteoric after Tesla became one of the big winners of booming interest in technology stocks during the pandemic. Its shares are up more than 400 per cent over the past 12 months leaving Musk worth $US175 billion and the world’s second richest person.

The Tesla founder has added $US5.1 billion to his wealth this year, bringing his fortune to $US174.8 billion.

Shares in Alphabet, the owner of Google, are up 31 per cent this year, making it one of the fastest-climbing big tech stocks and outpacing Amazon, Apple and Facebook. Its shares are trading at a record high and the company is worth $US1.5 trillion.

It follows figures by Forbes’ last week that revealed almost 90 per cent of the world’s billionaires are richer than a year ago, despite the pandemic having sent shockwaves through the corporate world.