Bernard Arnault, CEO of Louis Vuitton Moët Hennessy (LVMH), is now the world’s richest person, surpassing Tesla CEO Elon Musk.
According to Forbes’ real-time billionaires list, Arnault and his family’s net worth increased by $23.6 billion on Friday, surpassing Musk’s wealth of $204.5 billion.
LVMH shares soared over 12% on Friday, following solid sales reports.
Arnault, a French billionaire, investor, and art collector, manages the LVMH empire, which includes 75 fashion and cosmetics brands like Louis Vuitton and Sephora.
In 2021, LVMH paid $16 billion for American jeweler Tiffany & Co., reportedly the highest luxury brand transaction ever.
Arnault has five children: Delphine, Antoine, Alexandre, Frédéric, and Jean, all of whom hold official positions in Arnault-controlled brands.
On January 25, 2024, Arnault nominated two more of his offspring to the corporate board.
Agache, Arnault’s holding company, backs Aglaé Ventures, a venture capital firm with interests in companies like Netflix and ByteDance, TikTok’s parent company.