Stock Market Crash: World’s Billionaires Lose $7.4 Billion in 24 Hours
Friday, June 5, was a horrible day for U.S billionaires with quoted firms in the stock market as they lost a total of $7.4 billion, according to data tracking their worth, provided by Bloomberg.
The world’s richest man and owner of Microsoft, Bill Gates lost $175.5 million; almost half of the $330.4 million shed by American business magnate, investor and philanthropist, Warren Buffett, chairman, CEO and largest shareholder of Berkshire Hathaway; while Jeff Bezos, founder of Amazon.com, lost $321.5 million.
Perhaps the biggest by one family was the Waltons’ combined $1.8 billion slump, after Wal-Mart Stores, the world’s largest retailer’s stock, which they own just about half, dropped 1.47 per cent down to hit a 16-month low.
That means the Walton family- Alice, John, Jim and Rob, who own about a combined 1.62 billion shares of Wal-Mart stock, lost $1.77 billion in one day. And with the stock down 15 per cent year to date, the family has lost $20.77 billion so far in 2015. .
On the Bloomberg tracker, Hong Kong billionaire, Pan Sutong closed $944.4 million down; Michael Saul Dell of Dell Computers lost $127 million; Tsai Eng-Meng, owner of snack giant- Want Want China, $192.3 million; among others.
There were however gainers such as number 76 on the world’s billionaires league table like Hamm, whose worth rose by $333.2 million that Friday; Russian- Vladimir Olegovich Potanin of Interros, (number 54), $237 million; Willaim Ding, owner of Chinese internet giant NetEase, lost $165.4 million; Warren, $147.5 million and Wei, $124.5 million.
Similarly,Nigerian billionaires were hit by the market storm as their companies quoted on the Nigerian Stock Exchange recorded loses. The companies include Dangote Cement and National Salt Company, owned by Africa’s richest man, Aliko Dangote. Others on the losing train were Forte Oil and Conoil, belonging to billionaires- Femi Otedola and Mike Adenuga respectively.
