Bernard Arnault takes over Elon Musk to become world’s richest man

French businessman, Bernard Arnault has overtaken Elon Musk, the new Twitter owner to become the world's richest man as per Forbes 2022.

Arnault who is an investor and art collector, is also the co-founder, chairman, and CEO of the largest luxury goods firm in the world, LVMH Mot Hennessy - Louis Vuitton SE, has 

According to Forbes, Arnault and his family's estimated net worth as of December 2022 was US$188.6 billion, making him the current world's richest man.

French company LVMH Designer clothing, exquisite wines, and Moet Hennessy Louis Vuitton's retail operations have benefited from the pent-up demand that was released when Covid-related travel and shopping restrictions were abolished in the majority of countries.

The wealthy patrons of Christian Dior, Fendi, Bulgari, Tiffany & Co., and Moet & Chandon are served by Arnault's businesses.

According to the Bloomberg Billionaires Index, Elon Musk, 51, has seen his wealth fall by more than $100 billion since January, to $168.5 billion. That is less than the $172.9 billion net worth of 73-year-old Arnault, whose wealth is primarily derived from his 48% ownership of fashion giant LVMH. 

For the first time since he was No. 2 in September 2021, Musk's loss of the top spot in the rankings marks the end of a turbulent year for the frantic billionaire.

In a brazen demonstration of how the richest people could use their enormous fortunes, he startled the world in April with his bid to take Twitter private for $44 billion.

Musk tried to back out of the Twitter agreement for months, but was unsuccessful. In order to generate the necessary funds for the purchase, he sold more than $15 billion in Tesla shares - roughly $8.5 billion in April and another $6.9 billion in August.

The Bloomberg wealth index deducted $10 billion from his wealth once the Twitter acquisition was completed in October, reflecting the fact that shares of competing companies have fallen sharply since he made his bid.

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