Amazon's Bezos Becomes World's Third Richest Person

$2.6 billion isn't a bad day's haul
By Jenn Gidman,  Newser Staff
Posted Jul 29, 2016 8:03 AM CDT
Amazon's Bezos Becomes World's Third Richest Person
In this May 5, 2016, file photo, Jeff Bezos, the founder and CEO of Amazon.com, speaks in the State Dining Room of the White House in Washington.   (AP Photo/Susan Walsh, File)

Thursday wasn't a bad day for Jeff Bezos: a $2.6 billion rise in his fortune and a move up Forbes' billionaire list to become the third richest person on the planet, the magazine reports. The 24-hour windfall that brought the Amazon CEO's net worth up to a personal record of $66.5 billion was the result of his company's "blowout" second quarter; following after-hours trading, Bezos ended the day $1.5 billion ahead of Warren Buffett.

Forbes explains, though, that Bezos probably wouldn't have ascended to his new slot if Buffett hadn't just made his annual charity donation earlier this month—Buffett has pledged to give away 99% of his fortune, per Time—which dropped his net worth by $2.9 billion. The men lag behind Bill Gates and Amancio Ortega on Forbes' list. (This fall to fourth has happened to Buffett before.)

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