Five billionaires at Trump’s inauguration lose $200b in weeks

The start of Donald Trump's second term has been financially devastating for some of the world’s wealthiest individuals, with five billionaires, including Elon Musk, Jeff Bezos, and Mark Zuckerberg, losing a combined $209 billion, according to Bloomberg’s Billionaires Index.

When Trump was sworn in on January 20, 2025, he was surrounded by some of the world’s richest men, many of whom had seen their fortunes surge following his election win. The S&P 500 Index had hit record highs, and investors were optimistic that Trump’s policies would benefit the business community.

The weeks between Trump’s election and inauguration were a goldmine for these tycoons, with major companies experiencing massive growth. Musk’s Tesla, for example, saw its stock jump by 98%, and even Zuckerberg’s Meta Platforms Inc. saw significant gains in the weeks leading up to Inauguration Day.

However, just seven weeks into his second term, the picture has drastically changed. The stock market has been rattled by mass government layoffs and Trump’s fluctuating stance on tariffs, which has left investors uneasy.

Since Trump took office, the S&P 500 has dropped by 6.4%, and the companies behind the fortunes of these billionaires have seen a combined loss of $1.39 trillion in market value.

Biggest losers:

• Elon Musk (-$148 billion): Musk had the largest drop in wealth, with his net worth plummeting by $148 billion. Tesla’s stock, which soared by 98% after Trump’s election victory, has since reversed its gains. Sales in Europe have been sluggish, with Tesla’s sales in Germany dropping by more than 70% in early 2025. Additionally, Chinese shipments fell by 49% in February, marking the worst decline since mid-2022. Much of this drop has been attributed to Musk’s vocal support for far-right politicians, which has turned some consumers away from the brand.

• Jeff Bezos (-$29 billion): Despite his contribution of $1 million to Trump’s inauguration fund, Bezos has seen his wealth diminish as Amazon’s stock has fallen by 14% since January 17, 2025. Bezos, who had a public feud with Trump during the former president’s first term, had congratulated Trump on social media after his election win. But even Bezos’ positive gestures couldn’t prevent a significant drop in Amazon’s stock value.

• Sergey Brin (-$22 billion): The Google co-founder has also experienced a significant loss, with Alphabet’s stock dropping by more than 7% in February 2025 after the company missed its revenue estimates. Brin’s losses also come amid increased pressure from the US Justice Department, which is pushing for a breakup of Alphabet’s search engine business.

• Mark Zuckerberg (-$5 billion): Meta, Zuckerberg’s company, had a standout performance at the beginning of 2025, rising by 19% from mid-January to mid-February. However, that momentum faded quickly, and Meta’s stock has since fallen, erasing its earlier gains. The broader tech sector, including the so-called “Magnificent Seven” stocks, has also experienced a 20% drop since mid-December 2024.

• Bernard Arnault (-$5 billion): Arnault, the French luxury magnate who oversees LVMH, also suffered losses. LVMH’s stock soared by more than 20% from election night to January 2025, but it has since given up most of those gains. Analysts warn that Trump’s proposed tariffs on European luxury goods—ranging from 10% to 20%—could have a detrimental impact on LVMH’s sales, which were already struggling before the tariffs were suggested.

The dramatic losses highlight how quickly fortunes can change in volatile markets. In the weeks leading up to Trump’s second term, optimism around his policies, coupled with record highs in the S&P 500, had boosted the wealth of many of the world’s richest individuals.

However, the start of Trump’s second term has upended those gains, leaving many of these billionaires grappling with a painful financial reversal.

While the ultra-wealthy benefitted from a stock market surge during the transition between Trump’s election and inauguration, the subsequent months have been a harsh reminder that financial fortunes can change rapidly.

Earlier President Trump made a highly publicised purchase of a red Tesla Model X at the White House, alongside Tesla CEO and Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) Head Elon Musk.

The publicity stunt took place in front of a line-up of Tesla vehicles, including the Cybertruck, on the South Lawn of the White House.

It comes after shares in Tesla fell over 15% amid concerns about meeting production targets and a drop in sales. While Trump blamed a boycott by "radical left lunatics" for harming Elon Musk, analysts have pointed to fears about Tesla’s ability to meet delivery expectations and Trump's tariffs as the main reasons for the slump.