The boss of Louis Vuitton is the richest individual in the world
Agency
January 7, 2023
The boss of Louis Vuitton is the richest individual in the world
The wealth value of Bernard Arnault who is 73 years old is US$170.6 billion (RM751 billion). - REUTERS/Benoit Tessier photo
French fashion conglomerate who is also the boss of the Louis Vuitton brand, Bernard Arnault was named the richest person in the world by the Bloomberg Billionaires Index.
Arnault, 73, is the Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of LVMH, the luxury goods conglomerate that also owns other luxury brands such as Dior, Tiffany and Bulgari now has a fortune worth US$170.6 billion (RM751 billion).
The founder of Tesla, Elon Musk is in second place with a value of US$163.1 billion (RM717 billion).
Musk's value rests heavily on Tesla's soaring performance during the COVID-19 pandemic, but production concerns have sent it plummeting.
In contrast, LVMH's luxury goods business came through last year's market more robustly.
Shares of the Paris-based company are down just 9.7 percent since the start of the year.
LVMH's business benefited as demand for luxury retail products picked up once the lifting of COVID-19 restrictions allowed shopping to resume.
Arnault bought French fashion house Dior out of bankruptcy in the 1980s and used it to gain a stake in LVMH.
That shareholding structure remains to this day.
Arnault owns more than 97 percent of Dior, allowing him to own 41 percent of LVMH, the Wall Street Journal reported .
Meanwhile, infrastructure billionaire from India, Gautam Adani, 60, is in third place with a net worth of US$122.4 billion (RM538.50 billion), which is one step up from fourth position in July last year.
The Bloomberg Billionaires Index also lists American billionaire Warren Buffett, 92, as the fourth richest person in the world with a net worth of US$109.3 billion (RM480.3 billion) and he also owns Berkshire Hathaway and dozens of other companies such as Duracell, insurance company Geico and the Dairy Queen restaurant chain.
The chairman and founder of Amazon, Jeff Bezos, 58, from the US is listed as the fifth richest person in the world with the current net worth of the giant company being US$108.4 billion (RM476.69 billion).
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