Tesla CEO Now Richer Than Jeff Bezos By $100 Billion

Tesla CEO Elon Musk will personally drop by at the "Giga Fest"

Elon Musk, the CEO of American electric vehicle company Tesla, is now the richest man in the world, topping Amazon founder and executive chairman Jeff Bezos.

Musk’s net worth soared by $36.2 billion Monday after Hertz announced plans to purchase 100,000 Teslas for its rental fleet. It was the largest single-day gain ever recorded on Bloomberg’s Billionaires Index in its history, eclipsing Chinese tycoon Zhong Shanshan’s $32 billion surge in 2020.

The surge has made Musk $100 billion richer than Bezos. The Tesla CEO now has an estimated net worth of $288.6 billion. His wealth has surpassed that of Toyota’s market value, which is at $282 billion.

Announcing the purchase, Mark Fields, Hertz’s interim chief executive, said: “Electric vehicles are now mainstream, and we’ve only just begun to see rising global demand and interest.”

"The new Hertz is going to lead the way as a mobility company, starting with the largest EV rental fleet in North America and a commitment to grow our EV fleet and provide the best rental and recharging experience for leisure and business customers around the world," he said in a news release.

The Tesla vehicles that Hertz ordered will be delivered over the next 14 months. Tesla’s Model 3 sedans will also be available to rent at Hertz locations in the U.S. and Europe beginning November.

A large portion of Musk’s wealth is driven by Tesla, in which he owns 20% of the shares. His wealth has also funded other ventures, including The Boring Company, which aims to create underground freight tunnels, and Aerospace company SpaceX.

Musk also receives stock options from a complex pay package that is awarded when Tesla reaches financial milestones. Under the compensation package, Musk will be given the right to buy 101.2 million Tesla shares at a price of $70 per share once the company hits milestones for market capitalization, revenue, or Ebitda, according to Forbes.

Tesla hit at least four of the 12 targets in 2020, giving Musk an estimated $13.3 billion in total options payout in the same year.

Musk first became the world’s wealthiest person in January 2021 when his wealth hit $182 billion. At the time, Bezos, who had been the richest person, had a net worth of $181 billion, according to the Business Insider.