Topline
Meta founder Mark Zuckerberg surpassed Oracle founder Larry Ellison to become the third-wealthiest person in the world Monday, according to Forbes’ Real-Time Billionaire List, after the title had gone back-and-forth between the two tech billionaires on Friday.
At the Meta Connect developer conference, Mark Zuckerberg, head of the Facebook group Meta, shows … [+]
Key Facts
Zuckerberg’s net worth was up more than 4% to $217.7 billion after market close on Monday, while Ellison’s was down 0.3% to $209 billion.
The tech executives’ net worths mirrored their companies stock movements Monday, with Zuckerberg’s Meta closing at $630.20—about a 4% increase in share price—and Ellison’s Oracle closing down 0.3% at $165.78.
Zuckerberg and Ellison traded places between the third and fourth spots on Friday, Jan. 3, but Ellison ended the day on top.
Elon Musk remains the wealthiest person in the world with a net worth of $425.2 billion, followed by Amazon founder Jeff Bezos, whose net worth is $241 billion.
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Key Background
As recently as November, Ellison’s net worth was more than $228 billion and he was competing with Bezos for the title of the world’s second richest person, but his net worth took a tumble in early December. It was cut by $15 billion when Oracle’s stock paced its worst loss in nearly a year after releasing an earnings report showing it fell short of its estimates. Ellison owns roughly 40% of Oracle and serves as chairman, chief technology officer and cofounder. For his part, Zuckerberg owns about 13% of Meta’s stock and serves as the company’s chief executive and chairman. A number of technology executives saw their net worths increase after Donald Trump beat Kamala Harris in November’s election, with Ellison becoming $12 billion richer in the weeks after Election Day and Bezos’ net worth spiking $7 billion. Musk, who has become a key adviser to Trump, saw the largest swell of his net worth, which grew almost $21 billion in the day after the election.
Surprising Fact
Ellison and Zuckerberg’s net worths are both rounded out by impressive real estate portfolios. Business Insider reported last April that Zuckerberg has purchased more than 10 properties—including hundreds of acres in Hawaii and homes in Silicon Valley and Lake Tahoe—while Ellison has more than two dozen property investments, including nearly all of a Hawaiian island, a resort and multiple homes in California.
Tangent
Meta announced a new addition to its board of directors on Monday: UFC president and CEO Dana White. Zuckerberg announced White’s addition, along with the addition of Exor CEO John Elkann and former Microsoft team lead Charlie Songhurst, on Facebook Monday, saying he believes there are “massive opportunities ahead in AI, wearables, and the future of social media, and our board will help us achieve our vision.”
Further Reading
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