Elon Musk no longer world’s richest person - Bernard Arnault takes the title

Elon Musk is no longer the world’s richest person, according to Bloomberg and Forbes’ rich lists.

The title now belongs to French businessman Bernard Arnault, the chief executive of the LVMH empire, which includes Louis Vuitton, Christian Dior, Givenchy and Tiffany & Co, among other well-known luxury brands.

It was Musk’s automotive company Tesla that lost him the top spot.

French businessman Bernard Arnault is the chairman and CEO of LVMH. Photo / Getty

Tesla shares closed on Monday in New York down 6 per cent, shaving $7.4 billion off his fortune, according to Forbes.

It meant Musk ended the day worth an estimated US$181.3b (NZ$280b), while Arnault was worth about US$186.2b (NZ$289b).

That is a US$4.9b (NZ$7.6b) gap.

Musk’s fortune has tumbled by more than US$100b (NZ$155.2b) since January, according to the Bloomberg Billionaires Index.

This week, Musk responded to a tweet about Tesla that claimed the company was going to be OK because the billionaire boss didn’t seem worried.

“Tesla will be great long-term, but doesn’t control macroeconomic tides,” he responded.

Musk is also the chief executive of aerospace company SpaceX and social media network Twitter, which he took over in October after months of trying to wriggle out of the US$44b (NZ$68.3b) deal.

Elon Musk attends Heidi Klum's 21st annual Halloween party at Sake No Hana at Moxy Lower East Side in October. Photo / AP

Investors are said to have lost some confidence in Tesla because of Musk’s recent focus on Twitter. His controversial decisions, public disputes and tweets have dominated headlines for weeks.

In another tweet this week he wrote: “I will make sure Tesla shareholders benefit from Twitter long-term.”

Who is Bernard Arnault?

Bernard Arnault is 73 years old and the chief executive of French luxury goods conglomerate LVMH Moët Hennessy – Louis Vuitton, known as LVMH.

He started his career as an engineer at his father’s construction company and eventually worked his way up to become chairman.

Arnault made his first big move in fashion by acquiring a near-bankrupt textile company, Boussac, the parent company of Christian Dior, in 1984.

In 1989, Arnault became the majority shareholder and chief executive of LVMH.

He has five children, two with his first wife Anne Dewavrin and three with his current wife Helene Mercier. All his children have senior roles at LVMH.

Last week, Arnault’s second oldest child, Antoine, 45, was named chief executive of Christian Dior SE, the holding company through which the family controls LVMH.

The oldest of the children, Delphine, 47, became the youngest member of LVMH’s executive committee at age 43. She is also the executive vice president at Louis Vuitton.

Their youngest sibling, Jean, 24, is the marketing and product development director for watches at the same company.

LVMH fashion brands also include Christian Dior, Givenchy, Fendi, Celine and Marc Jacobs.

Stella by Stella McCartney, Fenty Beauty by Rihanna and Benefit Cosmetics are in the perfumes and cosmetics category. LVMH also owns Sephora.

Moët & Chandon and Hennessy are among its wine and spirit brands, and it also has luxury hotels and hospitality brands.

When it comes to watches and jewellery, the empire owns TAG Heuer, where Arnault’s second youngest child Frédéric, 27, is chief executive, and Bulgari.

LVMH was involved in what is believed to be the biggest luxury brand acquisition ever in January 2021 when it bought jeweller Tiffany & Co for US$15.8b (NZ$24.5b).

Arnault’s third child, Alexandre, 30, was made executive vice president of product and communications.