It's been a busy and rough year for Tesla Inc. (NASDAQ:TSLA) CEO Elon Musk. Working with the White House administration under President Donald Trump may be hurting the billionaire's wealth thanks to a declining Tesla share price, but he remains the world's richest person.
What Happened: Musk was briefly passed by Oracle Corporation (NYSE:ORCL) co-founder Larry Ellison for the title of richest person in the world on Wednesday, with shares of the software company soaring.
While the brief passing ends a consecutive reign by Musk of nearly a year on top of the Bloomberg Billionaires Index, he is back at the top as of Thursday with a wealth of $384 billion.
The battle between Musk and Ellison could go back and forth in the short term, with Ellison trailing by only $1 billion.
Ellison's rise comes with Oracle shares up 87% year-to-date in 2025 and new all-time highs hit on Wednesday. The gain of more than $100 billion in wealth on Wednesday by Ellison was the largest one-day gain for a billionaire, according to Bloomberg.
Musk, on the other hand, is the biggest wealth decliner in 2025 with a drop of $48.2 billion.
While this marks a significant amount, it is worth pointing out that Musk is currently worth as much as Meta Platforms (NASDAQ:META) CEO Mark Zuckerberg and Microsoft Corporation (NASDAQ:MSFT) co-founder Bill Gates combined.
Zuckerberg ranks third on the list at $264 billion, with a $56.9 billion gain year-to-date. Gates ranks 15th on the list with a wealth of $120 billion, declining $38.4 billion year-to-date.
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Why It's Important: Musk being the biggest wealth loser year-to-date and Ellison being the biggest wealth winner year-to-date could continue the changing of the guard at the top of the billionaires list.
Ellison's wealth comes from 41% ownership of Oracle stock and a large stake in Paramount Skydance (NASDAQ:PSKY).
Musk's wealth has fallen as Tesla shares have been highly volatile and sometimes tied to the political ambitions of the billionaire. Tesla stock is down 4.0% year-to-date and has not made new all-time highs in 2025.
Musk has been the world's richest person on and off again since 2021, often recovering the title quickly when Tesla stock trades higher.
In 2022, Musk set a Guinness World Record for the biggest one year wealth drop with an estimated $180 billion to $200 billion decline.
Musk’s wealth, equivalent to that of Zuckerberg and Gates combined, puts his financial standing into perspective, a figure that could increase substantially if a new pay package is approved.
Zuckerberg has climbed up the billionaires list thanks to the surge in Meta's stock price in recent years. Meta shares are up 25.7% year-to-date in 2025 and hit new all-time highs earlier this year. With a wealth gain of $56.9 billion in 2025, Zuckerberg is the current year-to-date winner.
Gates, who was once the richest person in the world, recently dropped out of the top 10. The drop comes as Gates has pledged the majority of his wealth to charity. Gates holds a stake in Microsoft and with shares up 20% year-to-date has gained from that ownership, helping to offset some of the philanthropic efforts.
Gates is the second biggest decliner in 2025, next to Musk, with a drop of $38.4 billion in wealth. While Musk is currently worth as much as Zuckerberg and Gates combined, the valuation may not last with Meta and Microsoft stock posting gains this year, and Tesla still trailing.
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