$US100b man: Facebook founder Mark Zuckerberg joins big tech elite as fortune soars amid coronavirus pandemic

Mark Zuckerberg’s net worth passed $US100 billion ($138b) for the first time Thursday after Facebook hit a record on optimism about the release of its TikTok competitor Reels. The 36-year-old joins fellow tech titans Jeff Bezos and Bill Gates as the only people in the world who currently have centibillionaire status, according to the Bloomberg Billionaires Index. Zuckerberg’s net worth is largely derived from his 13 per cent stake in Facebook. The founders of America’s largest technology companies have enjoyed a mind-boggling accumulation of wealth this year as the coronavirus pandemic drives more people online, despite the US economy contracting at its fastest pace on record. Zuckerberg has gained about $US22b this year. Bezos is up more than $US75b. The staggering numbers have put Big Tech under increased scrutiny, with Zuckerberg, Bezos, Apple chief executive Tim Cook and Alphabet head Sundar Pichai testifying before Congress last month to defend allegations that their power and influence are out of control. The five largest American tech companies —Apple, Amazon.com, Alphabet, Facebook, and Microsoft — currently have market valuations equivalent to about 30 per cent of US gross domestic product, nearly double what they were at the end of 2018. US Senator Bernie Sanders, meanwhile, plans to introduce legislation to tax what he called “obscene wealth gains” during the coronavirus crisis. The Make Billionaires Pay Act would tax 60 per cent of the increase in the ultra-wealthy’s net worth from March 18 through the end of the year and use the revenue to cover out-of-pocket health-care expenses of all Americans. Zuckerberg, who founded the social media giant from his Harvard University dorm room in 2004, has said he plans to give away 99 per cent of his Facebook shares over his lifetime. Bloomberg