Jeff Bezos, Founder of Amazon, Becomes the Richest Person in the World

Following a surge in Amazon's stock price on Wednesday, July 25, Jeff Bezos, its founder, has surpassed Bill Gates, the owner of Microsoft, in wealth and is now considered the richest person in the world. According to a report by AFP on Thursday, Forbes magazine states that after reviewing all of Mr. Bezos's assets, it can be said that his wealth has now reached $90.5 billion, while Bill Gates's wealth stands at $90 billion. Jeff Bezos owns 17% of Amazon's shares. Amazon, which initially started as an online marketplace, has gradually expanded its activities into various fields of production and new technology services such as virtual archives, online video streaming, computer hardware, and artificial intelligence. The company recently announced that it will acquire a chain of American grocery stores, thereby expanding its operations in this sector as well. Amazon's stock price increased by about 1.7% on Wednesday, reaching approximately $1,070. Over the past four months, the stock price of the company has risen by about 24%, adding $17 billion to the wealth of 53-year-old Jeff Bezos. According to Forbes financial magazine, in the statistics and rankings published by the magazine every March, Bill Gates has been the richest person in the world for the past four years and in 18 of the 22 years since this ranking was published. Only from 2010 to 2013 did Mexican telecommunications mogul Carlos Slim surpass Bill Gates. Other billionaires whose wealth has rapidly increased include Mark Zuckerberg, the founder of Facebook, whose total assets are now approximately $72.9 billion. The majority of Jeff Bezos's wealth is in Amazon, but he also owns a space company called 'Blue Origin' and the 'Washington Post' newspaper.