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Bill Gates Isn't The Second Richest Person In The World Anymore

Bill Gates Isn't The Second Richest Person In The World Anymore

The top spot is still comfortably occupied by Jeff Bezos

Amelia Ward

Amelia Ward

In the race to be the richest human being on the planet, Bill Gates has just slipped from second place to a still-very-comfy third.

Since the Bloomberg Billionaires Index was introduced seven years ago, the Microsoft boss has long occupied the silver medal spot, but now he's dropped down to number three in the rankings.

Still flying high in first place is the disgustingly rich owner of Amazon - Jeff Bezos. He's estimated to be worth a frankly ridiculous $125 billion (£100bn) according to Bloomberg - a number most of us can't even comprehend.

Jeff Bezos, the richest man in the world according to Bloomberg. No wonder he's smiling.
PA

Taking over his second place residency is possibly a less familiar face - that of Bernard Arnault. The French businessman owns LVMH, a 'luxury goods' conglomerate formed as the result of a series of mergers between big companies you'll definitely know already. Put simply, they make all that fancy stuff that - if you're lucky - you tend to get as a one-off present on your big birthdays.

A few of the things that LVMH produces (and that have therefore made Arnault rich AF) include Louis Vuitton and Dior goods; posh bevs including Moet & Chandon, Dom Pérignon and Hennessy; and most luxury watches.

Arnault has a net worth of about $107.6bn (£86.5bn), having added $39bn (£31bn) to his fortune in the past year.

That actually goes down as the biggest individual gain in all the 500 people in Bloomberg's ranking.

But Gates shouldn't (and probably won't) feel too bad about losing his second place spot. He's now worth $107bn - slightly less than Arnault - but if it wasn't for the fact he'd been so generous in his philanthropic ventures, he'd be No.1.

He has donated more than $35bn (£28bn) to the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, which seeks to 'empower the poorest, especially women and girls, to transform their lives', with the main aim of reducing financial and social inequality in the world.

Bezos' net worth has actually increased slightly this year, up to $125bn, even after his divorce from MacKenzie Bezos - which made her the world's fourth richest woman.

If you're not familiar with the brands Arnault owns, you may have heard his name when Paris' Notre Dame Cathedral was destroyed by a fire earlier this year. The CEO donated $224 million to the rebuilding of the iconic structure.

Bernard Arnault is now the second richest on the Index.
PA

The top five of the Bloomberg Billionaires Index is completed by Warren Buffett at number four - he's the chairman and largest shareholder of Berkshire Hathaway, and also has stakes in big brands like Coca Cola.

At number five is co-founder and chief executive of Facebook, Mark Zuckerberg.

Featured Image Credit: PA

Topics: Celebrity, Money