Jeff Bezos, Elon Musk among billionaires gaining net worth in pandemic
'A tale of two pandemics, with very unequal sacrifice'
April 23 -- The combined wealth of America’s billionaires, including Amazon.com Inc founder Jeff Bezos and Tesla Inc chief Elon Musk, increased nearly 10% during the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, according to a report published by the Institute for Policy Studies (IPS).
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The wealth surge of America’s richest men happened during a period that saw as many as 22 million Americans file for unemployment.
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Even as the broader economy faced a recession, tech and stay-at-home stocks like Zoom have rallied in recent weeks, due to a surge in usage of video conferencing and remote work technology, thus boosting the net worth of billionaire founders with holdings in those companies.
Tesla CEO Elon Musk introduces the Cybertruck at Tesla's design studio Thursday, Nov. 21, 2019, in Hawthorne, Calif. Musk is taking on the workhorse heavy pickup truck market with his latest electric vehicle. (AP Photo/Ringo H.W. Chiu)
“This is the tale of two pandemics, with very unequal sacrifice,” said Chuck Collins, a co-author of the report.
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During the period between January 1 to April 10 this year, 34 of the nation’s wealthiest billionaires have seen their net worth increase by tens of millions of dollars, the report said.
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According to the IPS report, eight of these billionaires including Bezos, Zoom Video Communications Inc founder Eric Yuan and Musk saw a $1-billion jump in their total net worth.
Eric Yuan, CEO of Zoom Video Communications poses for a photo after he took part in a bell ringing ceremony at the NASDAQ MarketSite in New York, New York, U.S., April 18, 2019. (REUTERS/Carlo Allegri)
In the last decade, U.S. billionaire wealth jumped over 80.6% adjusted for inflation, the report added. (Reporting by Abhishek Manikandan in Bengaluru; Editing by Shailesh Kuber)