Bill Gates Could Have Surpassed Elon Musk as The World's Wealthiest Individual With $1.2 Trillion If He Kept His Microsoft Shares

Had Bill Gates retained his Microsoft shares instead of engaging in philanthropy, he could potentially be the world's first trillionaire, with a net worth of US$1.2 trillion, threefold that of Elon Musk's current fortune.

According to Forbes, Musk's current valuation is $409 billion.

Melinda French Gates, Bill's ex-wife and co-founder of the Gates Foundation, is expected to be the world's third-richest individual with a net worth of $300 billion.

Prior to Microsoft's public offering in 1986, Bill possessed 11.2 million shares, constituting almost 49% of the company, valued at over $200 million at the time. Had he retained all his interests, those shares would have expanded through stock splits to 3.2 billion, resulting in a 43% ownership position in the firm today, valued at around $1.4 trillion for him and Melinda.

Moreover, the pair could have amassed around $100 billion in after-tax dividends over the years, as reported by Forbes. This sum would render Bill wealthier than all but the top 18 among the over 3,000 billionaires globally.

Bill Gates and Elon Musk engage in a handshake at a breakfast discussion themed "Dialogue: Technology & Innovation for a Sustainable Future" during the Boao Forum for Asia Annual Conference 2015 in Qionghai, China. Image by AP

The Microsoft co-founder consistently divested and contributed his shares over the years, retaining an estimated 0.9% ownership valued at $28 billion, or a quarter of his current net wealth. Melinda is projected to possess 380,000 shares, valued at approximately $170 million, constituting less than 1% of her total wealth.

Since establishing the Gates Foundation in 2000, the couple has contributed a total of $60.2 billion, positioning them as the second-largest philanthropists in the United States, following Warren Buffett, according to Entrepreneur magazine.

In May, Gates committed to donating 99% of his over $100 billion fortune within the next 20 years to enhance his charitable initiatives via the Gates Foundation.

Melinda has initiated her own organization, Pivotal Philanthropies, founded in 2022. In May 2024, she committed $1 billion over three years to advocate for the rights of women and girls. All individuals has power. However, societal restrictions frequently inhibit women from realizing their full potential," Melinda stated in an interview with Elle magazine in March. "Our objective is to eliminate those obstacles."