World's richest people add $336billion to their fortunes in ONE DAY

By OLIVIA ALLHUSEN, FOREIGN NEWS REPORTER Published: 16:05, 16 June 2026 | Updated: 16:06, 16 June 2026 The world's richest people added $336billion to their fortunes in a single day on Monday, marking the biggest 24-hour gain ever recorded. The surge, calculated at the close of trading in New York, pushed the combined wealth of the world's 500 richest people to a record $13.3 trillion, according to the Bloomberg Billionaires Index. Elon Musk, the world's first trillionaire, widened his lead as the world's richest person after his fortune jumped more than 10 per cent to $1.27 trillion. SpaceX was the biggest driver of the historic wealth surge as retail investors rushed to buy shares following its blockbuster stock market debut.  The company's value jumped by around 20 per cent, adding $164billion to Mr Musk's fortune in a single day, almost equal to the combined gains of the other 499 billionaires on Bloomberg's index.  The extraordinary rise has also widened the gap among the super-rich, with the world's 50 wealthiest people now controlling $6.5 trillion - almost as much as the $6.8 trillion held by the remaining 450 people on the list.  The rise means even the 12 least wealthy people on Bloomberg's rich list are now worth at least $7.9 billion each, the highest-ever threshold needed to enter the ranking. The world's richest people added $336billion to their fortunes in a single day on Monday, marking the biggest 24-hour gain ever recorded. Pictured: Elon Musk speaks before the ringing of opening bell at the Nasdaq Marketsite at the launch of the company's initial public offering (IPO) on June 12 Last week Elon Musk became the world's first trillionaire based on his combined stakes in SpaceX and Tesla. Above, speaking via video link as he delivered a message to Nasdaq Trading in shares of Elon Musk's rocket ship company SpaceX blasted off on Friday, marking the dramatic debut of the biggest initial public offering in history Global markets surged after the US and Iran reached an interim deal to reopen the Strait of Hormuz, easing fears of a major disruption to oil supplies and boosting investor confidence.  Last week, Mr Musk became the world's first trillionaire after a frenzy for shares in his rocket company SpaceX following its stock market debut. Investors were keen to climb aboard, sending the aerospace firm's shares soaring by more than 20 per cent and lifting its valuation from $1.8 trillion (£1.3 trillion) to more than $2 trillion (£1.49 trillion).  The initial public offering on New York's Nasdaq exchange was the world's biggest. The surge in SpaceX's share price to more than $160 also delivered an instant profit to investors who had bought in at $135. They included UK buyers who snapped up £270million worth of stock. The frenzy came despite the fact that the company remains heavily loss-making – to the tune of billions of dollars a year. Mr Musk joined a ceremonial bell-ringing at the Nasdaq remotely from SpaceX's Starbase headquarters in Texas. And he declared that his 'multi-planetary' ambitions extended to 'not just a few astronauts, I mean literally you'. 'Whoever you are watching this, SpaceX wants to be able to take you to the moon, take you to Mars and ultimately beyond,' Mr Musk added. The comments below have not been moderated. The views expressed in the contents above are those of our users and do not necessarily reflect the views of MailOnline. By posting your comment you agree to our house rules. Do you want to automatically post your MailOnline comments to your Facebook Timeline? Your comment will be posted to MailOnline as usual. Do you want to automatically post your MailOnline comments to your Facebook Timeline? Your comment will be posted to MailOnline as usual We will automatically post your comment and a link to the news story to your Facebook timeline at the same time it is posted on MailOnline. To do this we will link your MailOnline account with your Facebook account. We’ll ask you to confirm this for your first post to Facebook. You can choose on each post whether you would like it to be posted to Facebook. Your details from Facebook will be used to provide you with tailored content, marketing and ads in line with our Privacy Policy.