[Asia Economy Reporter Jeong Hyunjin] The novel coronavirus infection (COVID-19) has also changed the rankings of the world's wealthiest individuals. Amid the contrasting fortunes of companies due to the COVID-19 crisis and the rollercoaster performance of major countries' stock markets, leaders of 'untact (contactless)' companies have made it onto the billionaire list. The assets of the world's wealthiest people have decreased by $700 billion (approximately 852 trillion KRW) in one year due to the impact of COVID-19.
◆ Untact Company CEOs Appear on Billionaire List = According to the list of the world's billionaires released by the U.S. business magazine Forbes on the 7th (local time), Eric Yuan, founder and CEO of the video conferencing platform 'Zoom' (pictured), entered the global billionaire rankings for the first time with assets worth $5.5 billion (approximately 6.7 trillion KRW). His wealth ranked 293rd worldwide. Due to the surge in demand for video conferencing amid the COVID-19 crisis, Zoom's stock price doubled from January 3, when Forbes began its survey, to the 18th of last month. Yuan holds a 46% stake in Zoom. However, Zoom's stock price, which had risen further after the survey period, recently dropped significantly due to emerging security issues.
Larry Xiangdong Qian, who developed the Chinese online education company 'GSX TechEdu,' and Byju Raveendran, founder of the Indian online education application 'Byju's,' were listed for the first time at 383rd (assets of $4.5 billion) and 1196th (assets of $1.8 billion), respectively. Both companies saw a surge in users and stock prices following the COVID-19 outbreak.
Entrepreneurs in online gaming and delivery services also appeared on the list in large numbers. Since Forbes' survey period coincided with the spread of COVID-19, stocks of untact-related companies soared, significantly increasing the assets of their CEOs. Dmitry Buchman and Igor Buchman, brothers from the Russian online gaming company 'Playrix,' and Forrest Li of Singapore's gaming company 'Sea Limited' were included on the billionaire list as their stock prices rose. Jitse Groen, founder and CEO of the Dutch company Takeaway.com, which operates food delivery services in Europe and Israel, also became a billionaire. Takeaway.com, listed on the Amsterdam Stock Exchange in 2016, introduced a contactless delivery system in response to the COVID-19 crisis.
◆ Increasing Number of Billionaires with 'Decreased Assets' Due to COVID-19 = Most billionaires suffered setbacks due to COVID-19. According to Forbes' evaluation of asset values including stock prices as of the 18th of last month, the number of billionaires worldwide was 2,095 this year, down 58 from the previous year. Their total assets decreased by $700 billion compared to one year ago. Notably, the number of billionaires whose assets decreased was 1,062, the highest since Forbes began its survey. Forbes explained this as due to "volatile financial markets and the impact of COVID-19."
There were also changes in the rankings of wealthy individuals due to asset declines. One such figure is Warren Buffett, chairman of Berkshire Hathaway, known as the 'Oracle of Omaha.' He, who ranked third last year, swapped places with Bernard Arnault, chairman of LVMH, and his family. Buffett's assets dropped significantly from $80.8 billion last year to $67.5 billion this year. He appears to have been hit by the crash in airline stocks during the first quarter, after heavily purchasing U.S. airline shares since 2016 amid the COVID-19 impact. Buffett sold some airline stocks, including Delta Air Lines, on the 1st and 2nd of this month, reportedly incurring losses of about $5 billion.
U.S. President Donald Trump also reportedly lost $1 billion in assets due to the COVID-19 crisis. Trump's assets, which were $3.1 billion on the 1st of last month, dropped sharply to $2.1 billion by the 18th. Forbes attributed this to a significant decline in the valuation of commercial real estate in New York and San Francisco, as well as damage to related businesses such as hotels and golf courses.
Jeff Bezos, CEO of Amazon, ranked first for the third consecutive year with assets of $113 billion, followed by Bill Gates, founder of Microsoft (MS), with assets of $98 billion. Among Koreans, Lee Kun-hee, chairman of Samsung Electronics (75th, $14.1 billion), Kim Jung-ju, CEO of NXC (241st, $6.3 billion), Seo Jung-jin, chairman of Celltrion (253rd, $6.1 billion), and Lee Jae-yong, vice chairman of Samsung Electronics (330th, $5 billion) were included.
By nationality, the United States had the most billionaires with 614, followed by China (including Hong Kong and Macau) with 456. Among the 178 newly included billionaires, the largest number were Chinese (80), followed by Americans (44), Indians (12), and Germans (9).
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