Yesterday’s stock market plunge was one of the largest single day losses in history resulting in the fortunes of the world’s billionaires shrinking a little. Can bitcoin be the answer to this epic wealth gap?
Global stock markets were pounded on Monday with some shedding as much as 4% in a single day. While this is a relatively small percentage in comparison to crypto markets, it is a big deal for stocks.
The Dow plunged a thousand points yesterday marking the third biggest daily point drop for the Dow Jones Industrial Average in its 124 year history.
Investors have started to get the jitters as the Covid-19 virus spreads beyond China with countries including Italy and Iran recording spikes in infections.
Billionaires Lose Billions
According to reports, the ten richest people in the world lost a collective $30 billion. The world’s wealthiest person, Amazon’s Jeff Bezos, saw his net worth slide by $4.8 billion to just under $123 billion as shares of his e-commerce monopoly slumped 4%.
CEO of French luxury conglomerate LVMH, Bernard Arnault, lost a similar percentage as his wealth slipped to a mere $100 billion.
Billionaire Facebook boss Mark Zuckerberg also got stung as his firm’s stock slumped 4.5% yesterday which cost him $3.4 billion.
Elon Musk was in greater pain as his Tesla stock crashed 7.5% costing the tech mogul $2.4 billion. The company suffered more than the rest due to its reliance on a recently opened factory in China the report added.
Previously the world’s richest man, Microsoft’s Bill Gates, was hit with a $1.5 billion loss reducing his money pile to just $111 billion.
Forbes has reflected the changes in wealth on its ‘real time billionaires’ page.
The US president shrugged off the stock rout with claims that everything was under control with regards to the viral outbreak.
The Coronavirus is very much under control in the USA. We are in contact with everyone and all relevant countries. CDC & World Health have been working hard and very smart. Stock Market starting to look very good to me!
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) February 24, 2020
Bitcoin & The Epic Wealth Gap
The report highlights a growing wealth gap with those at the top getting richer even in the fact of these losses.
Crypto twitter has been awash with commentary today about Warren Buffet’s recent bitcoin remarks and claims that he will never own any. On industry observer aptly pointed out;
“Why do people keep asking an 89 year old value investor worth almost $100B about his views on a revolutionary new money system that will take decades to play out.”
There has been too much reaction to this largely insignificant interview when the real problem is that a very small number of people control a very large percentage of the wealth.
Being divisible and borderless, bitcoin can become a solution to this but it will not happen overnight.
Can bitcoin solve the wealth gap problem? Add your comments below.
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