In the pandemic, almost all businesses have been frozen rock solid. The virus has dampened the operations of almost all establishments, and handicapped the financial abilities of the people. However, there seems to be a glaring disconnect between the average joe and the billionaires.
A report surfaced in media outlets that billionaires have increased their wealth by a whopping $282 Billion during the COVID-19 pandemic. This ridiculous uptrend has been dubbed as the “Billionaire Bonanza”. The report stated that between March 18 and April 10, billionaires have already gained a 9.5% increase in their wealth as opposed to the 22 million Americans who have filed for unemployment during the same time.
Markets Insider considered this uptrend as a result of the stock markets rallying sharply, thus rewarding those in who have amassed large investments in stocks.
“Pandemic Profiteers”
The Institute of Policy Studies, authors of the “Billionaire Bonanza” have nicknamed these billionaires “Pandemic Profiteers”. The institute went took a detailed look at each of the short term earnings of American Billionaires. Among the figures, it stood out that eight billionaires have increased their wealth by at least $1 Billion. The top of the list is not a surprise either.
Amazon founder and CEO Jeff Bezos has been reported to have increased his wealth by $25 Billion since the start of the year; almost half or $12 Billion of this was since the beginning of the Pandemic in February. To put it to scale, Bezos’ earnings for less than a quarter of the year is bigger than the 2018 Gross Domestic Product of Honduras.
A big factor of these figures could be the fact that Amazon is a household name, even amidst the pandemic. Because of the stay at home measures, people turn to e-commerce to access their needs. This is where Amazon capitalizes.
Here are the seven other billionaires who have increased their wealth by at least $1 Billion in 2020:
- Mackenzie Bezos (Philanthropist and former wife of Amazon CEO)- $8.6 Billion
- Elon Musk (Tesla and SpaceX CEO)- $5 Billion
- Eric Yuan (founder and CEO of Zoom)- $2.58 Billion
- Steve Ballmer (Businessman and Owner of the Los Angeles Clippers)- $2.2 Billion
- John Albert Sobrato (Real Estate Developer)- $2.07 Billion
- Joshua Harris (Apollo Global Management and Investor) -$1.72 Billion
- Rocco Commisso (CEO and Founder of Mediacom Communications) $1.09 Billion
The study conducted by the IPS also highlighted some astounding statistics about American billionaires over the years. It was revealed that the billionaires’ wealth skyrocketed to 1,130% in a span of 30 years from 1990. This is two hundred times the average U.S median wealth growth rate of 5.37%. Tax obligations also declined over the years. IPS stated that over the course of four decades, the tax obligations of billionaires when measured as a part of their wealth has decreased by 79%.
What can you say about this? What do you feel about the shocking findings by the IPS?
Opinions expressed by AsianBlurb contributors are their own.
Brendan Cox (born 08/29/2000) is an American teen serial entrepreneur who currently owns and runs various businesses. Specializing in graphic design and branding, Cox is one of the most successful entrepreneurs in his age group.
