Nov 16, 2019 - Technology

Bill Gates tops Jeff Bezos as richest person in the world

Fadel Allassan

Bill Gates raises his arms while speaking. — Bill Gates. Photo: Mike Cohen/Getty Images for The New York Times

Microsoft's Bill Gates topped Amazon's Jeff Bezos as the richest person in the world for the first time in two years on Friday, Bloomberg reports.

Driving the news: The Pentagon's recently announced decision to grant a $10 billion cloud-computing contract to Microsoft ahead of Amazon may have played a part in the news, according to Bloomberg.

Shares of Microsoft have increased 4% since the decision was announced on Oct. 25, pushing Gates' assets to $110 billion.

Yes, but: Bloomberg notes that Bezos' net worth would be far greater had he not divorced his now-ex-wife, MacKenzie Bezos, which he announced in January. MacKenzie received a quarter of their jointly held Amazon stock earlier this year.

Gates has also cut into his wealth by donating more than $35 billion to the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation since 1994.

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Bill Gates tops Jeff Bezos as richest person in the world

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