Bill Gates, once the world’s richest person, is now no longer in the top 10 wealthiest individuals. According to the latest Bloomberg Billionaires Index, Gates has dropped to the 12th spot with a net worth of $124 billion as of 8 July 2025.
He now ranks behind Michael Dell, who is at number 11 with $137 billion, and Steve Ballmer, his former Microsoft colleague, who is far ahead at number 5 with $172 billion.
The drop is linked to a significant recalculation of Gates’s net worth by Bloomberg. The index adjusted his wealth to reflect his long-standing commitment to philanthropy. As a result, Gates’s wealth saw a reduction of about $52 billion, which has taken him out of the top 10 for the first time in several years.
A FOCUS ON CHARITY
This change does not come from poor performance in his investments, but from his decision to donate the majority of his fortune. Gates and his former wife Melinda have already donated over $60 billion to the Gates Foundation. In May this year, the foundation said it would spend another $200 billion by 2045, after which it plans to shut down operations.
“On the occasion of its 25th year, the Gates Foundation today made a new commitment to accelerate its mission to help all people live healthy, productive lives by spending $200 billion over the next 20 years. The decision marks a major acceleration in the foundation’s work and sets a new date of 2045 to sunset its operations,” the Gates Foundation said in a statement.
WHO ARE THE WORLD’S RICHEST NOW?
At the top of the list is Elon Musk with a net worth of $346 billion, even though he saw a daily fall of $15.3 billion. Mark Zuckerberg follows with $253 billion, then comes Larry Ellison with $248 billion. Jeff Bezos is in fourth place with $244 billion.
Steve Ballmer, once Microsoft CEO under Gates, is at number 5 with $172 billion. He is followed by Google co-founders Larry Page ($160 billion) and Sergey Brin ($150 billion).
Bernard Arnault, the only French national in the top 10, is at number 7 with $157 billion. Warren Buffett stands at $144 billion, while Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang and Michael Dell round off the top group with $138 billion and $137 billion respectively.
Gates, despite his drop in the list, continues to be one of the most influential philanthropists in the world. While others on the list are gaining wealth from booming tech stocks and business expansions, Gates is using his for global change.
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