Bezos, Musk and other billionaires lose combined $1.4T in first half of 2022

Billionaires — including Mark Zuckerberg, Jeff Bezos and Elon Musk — took a financial hit in the first half of 2022, losing a total of $1.4 trillion, Bloomberg reported.

Zuckerberg, whose total net worth is about $60 billion, according to the Bloomberg Billionaire Index, had begun the year with more than $100 billion, the news outlet noted. 

The index notes that Bezos has a current total net worth of $133 billion, while Bloomberg notes he lost around $63 billion in the first half of the year.

Meanwhile, Musk, whose total net worth is $210 billion, lost close to $62 billion during that same time period.

Among the billionaires who have seen the steepest losses for 2022 include cryptocurrency exchange executive Changpeng Zhao at close to $80 billion; Zuckerberg, who lost $65.5 billion; Bezos; Musk and LVMH CEO and chairman Bernard Arnault, who lost about $50 billion.

Bloomberg noted that some of the billionaire losses were attributed to poor company performance in the last quarter; others come against swings in certain markets, like cryptocurrency.

Those losses also come against several other factors: decades-high inflation, an ongoing Russian invasion in Ukraine tampering with an already sensitive supply chain and the Federal Reserve’s announcement last month to raise interest rates at the fastest pace in nearly 30 years.

Some have expressed concerns over a recession, though President Biden and members of his Cabinet argue that a recession is not “inevitable.”