According to the Bloomberg Billionaires Index, as of yesterday's New York close, the wealth of the world's 500 richest people had increased by a combined US$336 billion, the largest single-day increase on record, bringing their total net worth to a record US$13.3 trillion.
Elon Musk, the world's first trillionaire, further expanded his lead over other rich people, with his net worth increasing by more than 10% to US$1.27 trillion. The 12 people at the bottom of the list are the group with the least wealth among the world's super-rich. Each of them has a net worth of about US$7.9 billion, which also sets the threshold for entry into the index to a new high.
Ahead of Monday, market sentiment was boosted by a tentative deal between the United States and Iran to reopen the Strait of Hormuz. SpaceX just made its grand debut as a publicly traded company last week. Optimism pushed the Dow Jones Industrial Average to a record high, and both the Nasdaq 100 and the MSCI Developed Market Index closed near record highs.
SpaceX is the biggest driver of this wealth surge, with retail investors rushing to snap up the stock. The market value of SpaceX surged by 20%, helping Musk's net worth increase by US$164 billion, almost equal to the combined increase of the remaining 499 people in the Bloomberg Index, and becoming one of the largest single-day wealth increases on record.
For years, Musk’s wealth has been a symptom of the vast wealth inequality between the world’s wealthy elite and everyone else. Now, he has become an example of the widening gap among the super-rich. The index shows that the top 50 richest people currently control US$6.5 trillion in wealth, which is almost equal to the US$6.8 trillion held by the bottom 450 richest people combined.