Mr. Ballmer joined Microsoft in 1980 as its 24th employee.
According to Bloomberg’s Billionaire Index, the former assistant to Microsoft co-founder Bill Gates is now the fifth richest person in the world. With an estimated fortune of $117 billion, Steve Ballmer is just one spot behind Gates on the real-time list of the richest people in the world. He is currently richer than Larry Ellison ($114 billion), Warren Buffet ($113 billion) and Mark Zuckerberg ($110 billion), the index shows. Meanwhile, Bill Gates’ fortune is $122 billion.
According to CNNMr. Ballmer joined Microsoft in 1980 as its 24th employee. He has seen his wealth rise to $117 billion in the past year, according to Bloomberg data. His fortune now ranks him fifth, and his wealth has increased by more than $30 billion since the start of the year, the newspaper reported.
Before Ballmer are Elon Musk ($193 billion), Bernard Arnault ($156 billion), Jeff Bezos ($156 billion) and Bill Gates ($122 billion). Notably, he is unique in the top 10 cohort as he is the only non-founder of a major business empire.
Bloomberg’s Billionaire Index Report
From CNN, Mr. Ballmer attended Harvard University, where he met Mr. Gates. He graduated in 1977 with degrees in applied mathematics and economics. Mr. Ballmer began his career at Microsoft about 40 years ago as an assistant to the president. He then rose through the ranks to eventually become president and then CEO, succeeding Gates. Mr. Ballmer stepped down as CEO in 2014 and the same year he bought the Los Angeles Clippers basketball team.
However, much of Ballmer’s wealth is still tied up in Microsoft stock. According to Bloomberg, he still owns about a 4% stake in the company.
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Meanwhile, speaking of Bloomberg’s Billionaire Index, Elon Musk has lost $41 billion for the first time since June. According to the report, Musk’s net worth dropped to $193 billion. Notably, Mr. Musk, the richest person in the world, owns 13% of Tesla and derives most of his wealth from the car company. Bloomberg’s Billionaire Index report states that Musk has lost $41 billion since Tesla’s Oct. 18 earnings call. The report says Musk’s profit was $234 billion before the company’s disappointing third-quarter results.
