Bernard Arnault Surpasses Elon Musk to Become Richest Person in the World

Elon Musk is now second on Bloomberg's list of the world's richest individuals after being overtaken by Bernard Arnault, chairman of French luxury goods giant LVMH (LVMHF). Arnault is the first European to achieve this position.

As of Tuesday, the Bloomberg Billionaires Index valued Arnault at $171 billion, surpassing the $164 billion fortune of Tesla CEO Elon Musk. In Forbes' ranking of "Real Time Billionaires" from last week, Musk has already been surpassed by Arnault.

Arnault amassed wealth by creating the largest luxury conglomerate in the world, which also includes Celine, Tiffany, and Tag Heuer in addition to Louis Vuitton.

The 73-year-old Business tycoon has consistently ranked high in wealth lists, however, he rarely appears in public and doesn't engage in social media on a personal level. Here is a look at his biography as it has been reported by various international media:

Bernard Jean Étienne Arnault was born on March 5, 1949, in Roubaix. Marie-Josèphe Savinel, his mother and the daughter of Étienne Savinel, had a "fascination for Dior." The civil engineering firm Ferret-Savinel was owned by his father, manufacturer, and École Centrale Paris alumnus Jean Léon Arnault.

Bernard Arnault received his degree from the prestigious Polytechnique engineering school. Then, after migrating to the US in 1981, he began a career in real estate development at the family business, Ferret Savinel, which specialized in industrial building.

Upon his return to France, he entered the luxury goods market by acquiring the bankrupt textile company Boussac Saint-Freres, which was home to Christian Dior, in 1984. He utilized the cash infusion to buy a controlling interest in LVMH, whose two principal businesses, Louis Vuitton and Moet Hennessy, had amalgamated in 1987, after spinning off the majority of the company's other operations.

In the ensuing three decades, Louis expanded LVMH into a global luxury juggernaut with more than 5,500 outlets selling Champagne, wine, spirits, fashion, leather goods, watches, jewelry, hotel stays, perfume, and cosmetics. When he originally opened the first Louis Vuitton store in Beijing in 1992, he was quick to recognize that China would grow to be a significant market.

The largest company in Europe by market value, LVMH, relaxed the age restriction for its chief executive officer earlier this year. LVMH has a market value of €365.7 billion. That would enable Arnault to continue in command until the age of 80, indicating his intention to hold onto power longer.

Arnault said that LVMH sold its private jet in October in an effort to avoid detection. In an effort to shame billionaires for their carbon emissions, Twitter accounts track their aircraft. The topic gained popularity in France, where some politicians have suggested banning or taxing private airplanes.