Who are the richest people in the world? Is Elon Musk number one? The top 10 richest people in 2024 so far

It would seem that January 2024 was a long month for all of us, and that includes billionaires. When it comes to the richest people in the world in 2024 so far (as yes I know we are only in February still), there has been some movement. According to Forbes, as of February 1, there has been a change when it comes to the world’s richest person. Forbes reports that “AS of February 1, the 10 richest people on the planet are worth a combined $1.44 trillion-nearly £30 billion less than a month earlier.

There is one billionaire on the list who has had a month (January) he would rather most probably forget. The billionaire in question is Elon Musk - in that month, Tesla released a letter to its shareholders where it cautioned that sales growth for the year award was expected to be ‘notably lower’ than the previous year. Following a ruling by a Delaware judge on January 30, 2023 to void his nearly $51 billion pay package, Forbes reported that they had “discounted the package of options Musk had been awarded by 50%, shaving $25.5 billion off his fortune.”

In essence, this has led to Elon Musk no longer becoming the richest person in the world as of February 2024, he is now the second richest and has been replaced as the number 1 richest by Bernard Arnault of France. For those of you who are unfamiliar with Bernard Arnault, he is the Chairman and CEO of LVMH, a luxury goods company, which comprises the likes of fashion labels such as Louis Vuitton, Dior, and Fendi, jewellery companies such as Tiffany & Co, and Chaumet and wines and spirits such as Moët & Chandon. Bernard Arnault has been number two since June 2023 but then had a brief tenure as the richest person in the world on January 26, before taking over from Elon Musk in February. Forbes reports that “Last month Arnault’s luxury goods group LVMH announced a 9% increase in revenues for 2023, to $94 billion (86.2 billion Euros)- despite economic weakness in China and Europe.”

Like Rupert Murdoch and his family, Bernard Arnault and his family have been compared to the fictitious Roy family in the hit series Succession. In January 2024, The Telegraph reported that “Chairman and chief executive Bernard Arnault said his sons Alexander and Frederic will be named to the company’s board, where they will join two of his other children, daughter Delphine and son Antoine. The French billionaire is grooming his children to potentially lead the luxury empire in a scenario that has echoes of the award-winning drama Succession starring Brian Cox.”

Frederic Arnault is rumoured to be ‘dating’ BLACKPINK’s Lisa and the pair were seen together at Disneyland Paris earlier this year. Antoine Arnault is married to the supermodel Natalia Vodianova. When Bernard’s son Alexandre Arnault married Géraldine Guyot, the founder of French brand D’Estrëe in 2021,  Beyonce and Jay Z were among the guests. 

So if Bernard Arnault is now the richest person of the year so far and Elon Musk is the second richest person in the world, what about the remaining top 10?

Before you get too worried about Amazon’s Jeff Bezos (not that you were), he comes third when it comes to the top 10 richest people in the world. Forbes puts the value of Jeff Bezos at $177.74 billion. Larry Ellison who cofounded software firm Oracle and is now the chairman and Chief Technology Officer of the company (he was the CEO until 2014), is the fourth richest person in the world, with a fortune of $139.3 billion.

Facebook now Meta’s Mark Zuckeberg’s net worth is $137.7 billion which places him as fifth among the richest people in the world, Warren Buffett is number 6 with a net worth of $126.3 billion, Bill Gates is number 7, and has a net worth of $122.2 billion, Larry Page is 8, with a net worth of $117.7 billion, Steve Ballmer of Microsoft Investments is number9 with $117.3 billion and coming in at number 10 is Sergey Brin with a fortune of $112.9 billion.

Top 10 richest people in the world (as of February 2024)

1. Bernard Arnault (net worth: $210.8 billion)
2. Elon Musk (net worth: $182.6 billion)
3. Jeff Bezos (net worth: $177.4 billion)
4. Larry Ellison (net worth: $139.3 billion)
5. Mark Zuckerberg (net worth: $137.7 billion)
6. Warren Buffett (net worth: $126.3 billion)
7. Bill Gates (net worth: $122.2 billion)
8. Larry Page (net worth: $117.7 billion)
9. Steve Ballmer (net worth: $117.3 billion)
10. Sergey Brin (net worth: $112.9 billion)