Eight tech billionaires have seen their combined wealth plummet by approximately $266 billion this year, largely due to the repercussions of policies enacted by US President Donald Trump, according to Business Insider's report on March 11, 2025. The staggering financial losses, driven by sharp declines in stock prices across major tech companies, reflect the growing uncertainty surrounding the US economy.
The recent market turmoil culminated on March 10, 2025, when the Nasdaq Composite experienced its steepest drop since 2022, falling by 4% and causing the net worth of these billionaires to shrink by $64 billion on the same day. At the forefront of this financial downturn is Tesla and SpaceX CEO Elon Musk, who has lost $132 billion, equivalent to 30% of his fortune, as Tesla shares have declined 45% over the past ten weeks.
Other notable billionaires impacted by this financial downturn include Amazon's Jeff Bezos, Oracle's Larry Ellison, Dell Technologies' Michael Dell, and Nvidia's Jensen Huang, each of whom has lost more than $20 billion from their net worths this year. The declines reflect the struggling stock valuations, with Amazon and Oracle reporting losses of around 11% and Dell and Nvidia dropping by over 20%.
Alphabet co-founders Larry Page and Sergey Brin have also incurred significant losses, with their fortunes diminishing by about $18 billion and $17 billion, respectively, following the 12% drop in shares of Google’s parent company. Steve Ballmer, the former CEO of Microsoft, is down about $13 billion, as shares for Microsoft have decreased by 10%.
The triggers for these financial losses can be traced back to Trump's statements during a Fox News interview on March 9, 2025, where he indicated the US economy could be entering a 'transition period.' His comments, coupled with the warning of potential recession risks, have rattled investor confidence and dampened the previously soaring hype surrounding artificial intelligence and tech stocks.
The fallout from these drops is not limited to tech titans alone. It also extends to the world’s richest individuals, whose collective wealth has decreased by approximately $236 billion since the beginning of January 2025. This was underscored by a notable $87 billion drop on March 10 alone, indicating wider market unrest.
Amongst the few exceptions to the trend of losses are Bill Gates and Mark Zuckerberg, who have managed to retain some value, increasing their net worths by $4 billion to $5 billion for the year, even as Zuckerberg lost $9.5 billion on March 10, the second-largest loss of the day after Musk. Meanwhile, Warren Buffett has seen his wealth increase by about $14 billion this year, as well as figures such as Bernard Arnault and Amancio Ortega who have both gained between $6 billion and $7 billion.
Despite this wave of losses, it’s worth noting the wealth accrued by the top ten billionaires over the course of 2024, which grew by more than $500 billion collectively. Their total wealth reportedly stands at approximately $2 trillion, parallel to the combined market valuation of major companies like Amazon or Alphabet.
“The richest of the rich shouldn’t feel too sorry for themselves, as 2024 was simply brilliant for them,” Business Insider highlighted, contextualizing the current economic climate against the backdrop of significant wealth accumulation.
While this year’s downturn may pose serious challenges for tech billionaires, it also reflects the volatile nature of stock markets, particularly as they navigate through complex economic signals influenced by political discourse and policy changes.