By Emmanuel Obisue
America’s richest individuals, including tech moguls Elon Musk and Jeff Bezos, have collectively lost over $300 billion during the first 100 days of President Donald Trump’s second term, according to a new report from Forbes.
Since Trump’s return to office on January 20, the U.S. stock market has experienced its worst start to a presidential term in half a century.
The S&P 500 and Dow Jones Industrial Average both dropped nearly 8%, driven in part by renewed trade tensions and tariff policies from the Trump administration.
Elon Musk, CEO of Tesla and SpaceX, suffered the most significant personal loss, with his net worth plunging by over $45 billion. Tesla’s stock has fallen 33% amid concerns over supply chain issues and growing unease around Musk’s political positioning.
Once a vocal supporter of Trump’s government streamlining agenda, Musk has since distanced himself from the administration. He’s engaged in public disputes with key figures like Trump’s senior trade adviser Peter Navarro.
Other tech billionaires also took heavy hits:
Jeff Bezos: down $34.8 billion
Sergey Brin: down $25.6 billion
Larry Page: down $27.4 billion
Mark Zuckerberg: down $21.5 billion
Oracle’s Larry Ellison, who supported Trump and backed a proposed $500 billion AI infrastructure plan, saw his wealth fall by $28.2 billion. Blackstone’s Stephen Schwarzman, who initially distanced himself from Trump’s 2024 campaign but later re-engaged, lost nearly $11 billion.
Amid the losses, Warren Buffett stands out as an exception. The Berkshire Hathaway chairman saw his net worth increase by $19.6 billion, thanks to his company’s 13% stock gain and a cash reserve of $334 billion that helped buffer market turbulence.
Others who gained include Peter Thiel and Palantir CEO Alexander Karp, both benefiting from federal contracts. Walmart heirs Rob, Jim, and Alice Walton each added over $3 billion, profiting from inflation-driven retail demand.
Even President Trump was affected. His net worth dropped by $1.5 billion, mainly due to a 35% decline in the stock price of Trump Media & Technology Group, the parent company of Truth Social.
