Billionaires see record-breaking $304 billion wealth surge as stock markets soar

The world’s wealthiest individuals saw their combined net worth soar by $304 billion on April 9, marking the largest one-day increase in the history of the Bloomberg Billionaires Index. 

This surge came as stock markets rallied following President Donald Trump's announcement to pause tariffs on certain trading partners.

The S&P 500 Index experienced its biggest jump since 2008 after Trump’s midday pledge, recovering from steep losses in recent days. This sharp rebound boosted the wealth of the world’s 500 richest people by an average of 3.5%. Meanwhile, the Nasdaq Composite Index also surged, experiencing its largest increase in over 24 years.

This record-breaking day of wealth accumulation came just after a market downturn last week following Trump’s initial tariff announcement. The scale of the proposed tariffs had surprised analysts and triggered the largest wealth losses since the Bloomberg Billionaires Index began in 2013. The recovery continued into Asian trading hours on April 9, with regional stocks posting their largest gains in more than two years.

Wednesday’s wealth increase surpassed the previous record of $233 billion, set in March 2022, when Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell raised interest rates for the first time in years but reassured investors about the economy's resilience.

Tesla CEO Elon Musk was the day’s biggest individual gainer, adding $36 billion to his fortune after Tesla’s stock jumped 23%. Meta Platforms CEO Mark Zuckerberg followed closely, gaining nearly $26 billion. Jensen Huang, CEO of Nvidia, saw his wealth rise by $15.5 billion as the company’s stock rebounded 19%, nearly recovering the 13% decline it experienced the previous week.

Carvana CEO Ernest Garcia III experienced the largest percentage gain, with his wealth increasing by 25%, adding $1.4 billion to his net worth as the used-car retailer’s stock surged.

In Thursday’s trading, billionaires in Asia also saw significant gains. Masayoshi Son, chairman of SoftBank Group Corp., added $1.7 billion to his fortune, bringing it to $11.7 billion as of 10:20 a.m. in Hong Kong. Zhou Qunfei, China’s second-richest woman, saw her fortune rise by 14.3%, reaching $9.5 billion.

Among other notable gainers, Tadashi Yanai, the chairman of Uniqlo, gained $3.5 billion, bringing his total net worth to $47 billion. Zhang Congyuan, chairman of footwear maker Huali Industrial Group Co., saw his wealth surge by 12.9%, reaching $8 billion.

By Tamilla Hasanova