Amazon CEO Jeff Bezos (center) laughs as he talks with Ron Gagliardo (right), the lead horticulturist of the Amazon Spheres, following the grand opening ceremony for the plant-filled geodesic domes built for Amazon employees, on Jan. 29 in Seattle. (AP Photo/Ted S. Warren, file)

Amazon CEO Jeff Bezos (center) laughs as he talks with Ron Gagliardo (right), the lead horticulturist of the Amazon Spheres, following the grand opening ceremony for the plant-filled geodesic domes built for Amazon employees, on Jan. 29 in Seattle. (AP Photo/Ted S. Warren, file)

Jeff Bezos is the richest man on the planet

Bill Gates got bumped into second place.

  • Stacia Glenn The News Tribune (Tacoma, Wash.)
  • Wednesday, March 7, 2018 8:39am
  • BusinessNorthwest

By Stacia Glenn / The News Tribune

Jeff Bezos is the richest man on earth with a cool $112 billion.

Thanks to a $39.2 billion jump in his net worth this past year, the Amazon CEO took top billing on Forbes’ list of billionaires for the first time.

That bumps Bill Gates to second place with his $90 billion fortune.

It’s the biggest gap between number one and number two since 2001, Forbes reported.

Bezos is the first person to appear on the list with a 12-figure fortune and boasts the list’s biggest one-year gain.

Forbes tracked down information on 2,208 billionaires from 72 countries and territories, including some firsts from Zimbabwe and Hungary.

The United States has the most billionaires with 585, followed by China with 373.

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