Mark Zuckerberg is now the world’s second-richest person, ahead of Amazon founder Jeff Bezos, after shares of Facebook’s parent company Meta rose sharply on its strong second-quarter results.
The founder and chief executive of Meta now has a personal fortune worth $206 billion, according to the Bloomberg Billionaires Index. That puts him $1 billion ahead of Mr Bezos and $50 billion behind Tesla’s founder and chief executive Elon Musk, the world's richest man.
The majority of Mr Zuckerberg's wealth is derived from his 13 per cent stake in the Menlo Park, California-based firm, the world’s biggest social media company.
Mr Zuckerberg has seen his fortune grow $78 billion so far this year, the most of any of the world’s 500 richest people tracked by the Bloomberg index. The 40-year-old has gained four spots this year on the wealth index. He was also one of the biggest wealth movers of 2023.
He could receive a payout of about $700 million a year from Meta's first-ever dividend announced for investors this year. In February, Meta announced plans to buy back an additional $50 billion in shares and issue its first quarterly dividend since listing in May 2012.
Meta shares have risen 23 per cent since it reported better-than-expected sales in the second quarter. The stock closed at an all-time high of $582.77 on Thursday.
The Facebook parent beat Wall Street estimates for revenue and profit in the second quarter. It reported revenue growth of 22 per cent annually to $39.07 billion in the three-month period, marking a fourth straight quarter of growth in excess of 20 per cent. Net income jumped 73 per cent to $13.47 billion.
It is spending heavily on artificial intelligence, virtual reality and augmented reality technology, a big area of focus for investors. Meta has been pouring money into data centre infrastructure and computing power that Mr Zuckerberg said is necessary to stay ahead of the competition.
In 2022, Mr Zuckerberg shed $71 billion – or 57 per cent – from his net worth as the stock market bear run eroded the personal wealth of many of the world’s technology billionaires.
A billionaire’s net worth is typically tied to the equity of their companies and can live and die on the back of volatile global stock markets.
Mr Zuckerberg's wealth rout began in February 2022, when he fell out of the list of the world’s top 10 wealthiest people – and the elite $100 billion club – for the first time since 2015, Reuters reported.
At the time, he lost $29 billion of his net worth after Meta’s stock recorded its biggest one-day fall on February 4, when it dropped by 26 per cent and erased more than $200 billion from the company’s market capitalisation.
Mr Zuckerberg’s one-day wealth decline in February 2022 is among the biggest in history and came after Mr Musk’s $35 billion single-day paper loss in November 2020, Reuters reported. The Facebook founder ended 2022 with a net worth of $44 billion and was ranked the world's 25th-wealthiest person, down from a high of number three in 2021.
However, Mr Musk holds the world record for the biggest wealth loss in history after shedding $182 billion from his net worth between November 2021 and January 2023, the Guinness World Records said.
In March this year, Mr Musk was knocked off his perch as the world’s richest person after the electric vehicle maker’s shares tumbled. In the span of only one day, Mr Musk lost $17.6 billion from his personal fortune, pushing him out of the $200 billion club and into second place on the index below Mr Bezos.
Mr Zuckerberg started Facebook at Harvard in 2004 at the age of 19 for students to match names with photos of classmates. He took Facebook public in May 2012 and now owns about 13 per cent of the company's stock, according to Forbes magazine.
Facebook changed its name to Meta Platforms in November 2021 in a sign it was shifting the company's focus to the metaverse.
In December 2015, Mr Zuckerberg and his wife, Priscilla Chan, pledged to give away 99 per cent of their Meta stake over their lifetimes.
Top 10 richest people in the world
1. Elon Musk – $256 billion
2. Mark Zuckerberg – $206 billion
3. Jeff Bezos – $205 billion
4. Bernard Arnault – $193 billion
5. Larry Ellison – $179 billion
6. Bill Gates – $161 billion
7. Larry Page – $150 billion
8. Steve Ballmer – $145 billion
9. Warren Buffett – $143 billion
10. Sergey Brin – $141 billion
Source: Bloomberg Billionaires Index
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UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
The Bio
Amal likes watching Japanese animation movies and Manga - her favourite is The Ancient Magus Bride
She is the eldest of 11 children, and has four brothers and six sisters.
Her dream is to meet with all of her friends online from around the world who supported her work throughout the years
Her favourite meal is pizza and stuffed vine leaves
She ams to improve her English and learn Japanese, which many animated programmes originate in
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Wicked: For Good
Director: Jon M Chu
Starring: Ariana Grande, Cynthia Erivo, Jonathan Bailey, Jeff Goldblum, Michelle Yeoh, Ethan Slater
Rating: 4/5
New UK refugee system
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- Shortened leave to remain - refugees will receive 30 months instead of five years
- A longer path to settlement with no indefinite settled status until a refugee has spent 20 years in Britain
- To encourage refugees to integrate the government will encourage them to out of the core protection route wherever possible.
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Traits of Chinese zodiac animals
Tiger:independent, successful, volatile
Rat:witty, creative, charming
Ox:diligent, perseverent, conservative
Rabbit:gracious, considerate, sensitive
Dragon:prosperous, brave, rash
Snake:calm, thoughtful, stubborn
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Sheep:easy-going, peacemaker, curious
Monkey:family-orientated, clever, playful
Rooster:honest, confident, pompous
Dog:loyal, kind, perfectionist
Boar:loving, tolerant, indulgent
Sonchiriya
Director: Abhishek Chaubey
Producer: RSVP Movies, Azure Entertainment
Cast: Sushant Singh Rajput, Manoj Bajpayee, Ashutosh Rana, Bhumi Pednekar, Ranvir Shorey
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Read more about the coronavirus
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Groom and Two Brides
Director: Elie Semaan
Starring: Abdullah Boushehri, Laila Abdallah, Lulwa Almulla
Rating: 3/5
Visit Abu Dhabi culinary team's top Emirati restaurants in Abu Dhabi
Yadoo’s House Restaurant & Cafe
For the karak and Yoodo's house platter with includes eggs, balaleet, khamir and chebab bread.
Golden Dallah
For the cappuccino, luqaimat and aseeda.
Al Mrzab Restaurant
For the shrimp murabian and Kuwaiti options including Kuwaiti machboos with kebab and spicy sauce.
Al Derwaza
For the fish hubul, regag bread, biryani and special seafood soup.
The specs: 2019 Haval H6
Price, base: Dh69,900
Engine: 2.0-litre turbocharged four-cylinder
Transmission: Seven-speed automatic
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Bharatanatyam
A ancient classical dance from the southern Indian state of Tamil Nadu. Intricate footwork and expressions are used to denote spiritual stories and ideas.
England's lowest Test innings
- 45 v Australia in Sydney, January 28, 1887
- 46 v West Indies in Port of Spain, March 25, 1994
- 51 v West Indies in Kingston, February 4, 2009
- 52 v Australia at The Oval, August 14, 1948
- 53 v Australia at Lord's, July 16, 1888
- 58 v New Zealand in Auckland, March 22, 2018
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Ant-Man and the Wasp
Director: Peyton Reed
Starring: Paul Rudd, Evangeline Lilly, Michael Douglas
Three stars
More on Quran memorisation:
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
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Overview
What: The Arab Women’s Sports Tournament is a biennial multisport event exclusively for Arab women athletes.
When: From Sunday, February 2, to Wednesday, February 12.
Where: At 13 different centres across Sharjah.
Disciplines: Athletics, archery, basketball, fencing, Karate, table tennis, shooting (rifle and pistol), show jumping and volleyball.
Participating countries: Algeria, Bahrain, Comoros, Egypt, Iraq, Jordan, Kuwait, Lebanon, Libya, Morocco, Oman, Palestine, Saudi Arabia, Sudan, Syria, Tunisia, Qatar and UAE.
