Amazon founder Jeff Bezos briefly snagged the crown of ārichest person in the worldā on Thursday from Bill Gates, in on the planet.
Bezosā net worth spiked to US$90.5 billion Thursday morning, putting him just ahead of the Microsoft founderās $90-billion fortune. Bezosā fortune has surged in the past four months, amid a 24 per cent increase in Amazon stocks. Bezos holds a 17 per cent share in the tech firm, which has been expanding into cloud computing, artificial intelligence, online video and grocery sales. Bezos also owns the space firm Blue Origin, as well as the Washington Post.
Bill Gates regained his list-topping spot on Thursday afternoon, regaining the ārichest person in the worldā title that heās held in 18 of the past 22 annual rankings.
Gatesā net worth was listed at $89.8 billion on Thursday afternoon, with Bezos trailing at $89.2 billion and Spainās Amacio Ortega in third, at $83.5 billion.
David Thomson, chairman of Thomson Reuters, is the wealthiest Canadian and No. 29 on Forbesā worldwide list. He boasts a fortune of approximately $27.7 billion.