Billionaires see record wealth surge following Trump victory

It has been a remarkable time for the world's wealthiest individuals, as the combined fortunes of its top 10 richest people soared by a historic USD 64 billion (approx. Rs 54 lakh crore) in a single day, according to Bloomberg’s Billionaire Index. The surge in wealth coincides with market optimism following the US election results, and signals investor anticipation of pro-business policies under President-elect Donald Trump.

Elon Musk, CEO of Tesla and SpaceX, led the gains with a USD 26.5 billion increase, bringing his net worth to an unprecedented USD 313.7 billion — marking the first time in nearly three years that his fortune has crossed the USD 300 billion mark. Tesla’s stock jumped by 28 per cent as investors speculated that Musk’s strong relationship with Trump could yield favourable regulatory decisions for the electric vehicles industry.

Musk has anyway enjoyed a record increase in his fortune since Trump’s win, mainly owing to Tesla’s soaring stock and the stability of SpaceX, which Bloomberg values at USD 82 billion. Trump has hinted at policies that will support Musk’s ventures, including reconsidering previous plans to slow the adoption of electric vehicles.

Other Trump-supporting billionaires also saw significant gains. Oracle co-founder Larry Ellison, whose outspoken support for Trump has been widely noted, added USD 5.5 billion to his fortune.

Meanwhile, Amazon founder Jeff Bezos, who recently chose not to endorse vice-president Kamala Harris through the Washington Post, saw his wealth rise by $7.1 billion as the markets rallied.

The day also saw additional increases for prominent billionaires such as Bill Gates, Steve Ballmer, Larry Page, Sergey Brin and Warren Buffett. Although these tech moguls have been publicly supportive of Democrat initiatives, they, too, benefited from the bullish market trends.

This post-election market boom reflects high expectations of deregulation and tax policies that investors believe could boost stock values, particularly for companies led by the ultra-wealthy. "The perception of a business-friendly, tax-friendly regime is creating a strong pro-market sentiment," said Michael Block, COO at AgentSmyth.

Trump’s conservative social media company Truth Social also reaped substantial benefits as its stock initially surged by up to 35 per cent before stabilising. The president-elect is the dominant shareholder, with a stake that briefly reached a value of USD 5.3 billion, up from USD 3.9 billion at the close of election day. The stock's rally highlights investor confidence in Trump Media & Technology Group's potential under the incoming administration.

Bloomberg described Wednesday’s gains as the “largest single-day increase” since it began tracking wealth trends in 2012. The unprecedented gains underscore the strong correlation between billionaire wealth and political sentiment, as markets responded enthusiastically to Trump's win and the anticipated changes to US business policy.