Elon Musk surpasses Bill Gates to become world's second-richest person: Bloomberg

Tesla CEO Elon Musk overtook Bill Gates to become world's second-richest person on Monday (Nov. 23), according to the Bloomberg Billionaires Index.

The 49-year-old Tesla co-founder has added US$100.3 billion to his net worth this year, which has rocketed to US$127.9 billion, representing a growth more than anyone on the Bloomberg's ranking of the world's 500 richest people. Musk's latest net worth is expected to value more than the combined worth of China's two richest men, Ma Yun and Ma Huateng, according to Forbes Real-time Billionaires List.

Musk's ascent was driven by yet another surge in Tesla's share price, whose market value is approaching US$500 billion. Tesla shares account for about three-quarters of Musk's net worth, a fourfold of his stake in SpaceX.

Space Exploration Technologies Corp. (SpaceX) is an American aerospace manufacturer and space transportation services company founded in 2002 by Elon Musk. It was established with the goal of reducing space transportation costs to enable the colonization of Mars.

SpaceX on November 15 launched four astronauts to the International Space Station on the first full-fledged taxi flight for NASA by a private company. In early November, Musk was diagnosed with COVID-19. Burdened by the disease, he was forced to spectate the launch from a distance.