Thank Souq for that! Jeff Bezos now world's second richest

Amazon chief Jeff Bezos has surpassed clothing tycoon Amancio Ortega and Berkshire Hathaway chairman Warren Buffett to become the world's second-richest person. That is richest in terms of net worth, as each of Bezos' shares in Amazon rose $18.32 yesterday, netting him $1.5bn after his company announced its plans to acquire …

[jonha]

"None, however, touches Microsoft co-founder Bill Gates, with a net worth of $86bn."

Wait and see. On current trends there'll be a switch sometime in the early 2020s. And if the MS people succeed with their plans to make us all Happy Fans Of Windows, it'll be sooner still.

[Gene Cash]

Actually, by this time next year, Gates should own no MSFT stock.

http://www.reuters.com/article/us-microsoft-gates-idUSBREA410YS20140503

[adam payne]

How much does he and his company owe in tax though?

[Anonymous Coward]

How much does he and his company owe in tax though?

That's an easy one: none whatsoever. In fact, they might be due for a small refund.

Just ask their accountants, why don't you?

[m0rt]

I am telling you - Amazon is the company that will own the world. Not Google, not (hahahahhahahha) Microsoft.

Once they start buying up business leases on properties and letting Amazon stores use them, utilising the existing logistics, and getting taxes for local governing bodies, it will become the Lucky Dragon of the real world.

[Geoffrey W]

Bezos is now moving into space so we are well on the way to Wall-E's world. Say bye bye to your legs.

[Anonymous Coward]

Profit not needed.

Amazon is worth about a quarter of a trillion dollars but their profit margin is, what? about 2%? Could you even get a bank loan if you told them you hope to get 2% profit and then hope to drive out competition in a hope to create much larger profits with a monopoly?

Seems to me that it doesn't take a rare genius to become rich when your company isn't required to make a profit and yet grows to the size of Putins wealth. No doubt another sign that the capitalistic system is far from rational or as we discovered in 2008 capitalistic or following laws citizens have to.

Meanwhile Nations are making no effort to protect their own small business and industries,or taxpayers.