Amplifying fresh critiques of wealthy inequality that have mounted throughout the coronavirus pandemic, Amazon founder Jeff Bezos—the world’s richest man—has added nearly $24 billion to his already massive fortune in 2020 as virus-related lockdowns across the globe have forced people to stay inside and fueled increased e-commerce demand.
Explaining the source of a nearly 5% jump in Bezos’ net worth Tuesday, Forbes reported that Amazon stock surged 5.3%, “hitting a new record close of $2,283 per share. The stock is now up over 20% so far this year, outpacing the benchmark index (the S&P 500 is down over 12%).”
Bezos was worth $138 billion as of Tuesday, according to the Bloomberg Billionaires Index. He is Amazon’s CEO and president, and owns an 11.2% stake the e-commerce giant, which has come under fire for how it has treated workers during the outbreak.
While Bezos tops the index, Fortune noted that the 18th spot now belongs to his ex-wife MacKenzie, “who was left with a 4% stake in Amazon as part of the couple’s recent divorce settlement. Her net worth has climbed $8.2 billion to $45.3 billion.”
The index updates followed a Forbes report from Saturday about how “market gains led to a combined $51.3 billion boost for 10 of the world’s billionaires since the market closed a week ago, on April 2.” Bezos gained $6.8 billion in that time, an increase second to only that of Amancio Ortega of the Spanish fast-fashion retailer Inditex.
Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.), a longtime labor rights advocate and foe of millionaires and billionaires, tweeted the Forbes report Wednesday and highlighted how the wealth increases of Bezos and other billionaires contrast with the millions of Americans who have lost their jobs because of the ongoing public health crisis.
As Common Dreams reported last week, U.S. unemployment claims during the pandemic have soared to 16.8 million, which one economist noted “is a mind-boggling 2,500% increase over the pre-virus period.”
That contrast between U.S. billionaires and the nation’s newly unemployed was also pointed out on Twitter Wednesday by Public Citizen, which cited the Forbes report.
