Louis Vuitton chief Bernard Arnault becomes world's richest surpassing Jeff Bezos

Bernard Arnault (Image: Reuters)

Chairman of Louis Vuitton Moet Hennessy (LVMH) Bernard Arnault became the richest person in the world after surpassing Amazon founder Jeff Bezos. The French business tycoon's net worth was recorded at $198.9 billion, according to Forbes Real-Time Billionaires List.

Arnault had earlier achieved this feat in December 2019, January 2020, May 2021, and July 2021. Meanwhile, Bezos's net worth stood at $194.9 billion followed by Tesla and SpaceX chief Elon Musk at $185.5 billion.

Arnault spent $538 million dollars in recent months acquiring shares of his own French label brand controlled by him and his family. He overtook Elon Musk- Space X and Tesla owner when the company reported first-quarter revenue of €14 billion in 2021, which surged by 32 percent as compared to the first quarter of 2020.

LVHM oversees an empire of 70 brands including Louis Vuitton, Sephora, Tiffany & Co, Stella McCartney, Gucci, Christian Dior, Givenchy which are independently managed and operated under the LVMH umbrella.