Reuters quoted a Mexican financial news service while reporting the fact that Bill Gates, Microsoft Corporation chairman and co-founder, has been overtaken on the world"s richest list by Mexican telecommunications tycoon Carlos Slim. A 27% surge in the stock price of Slim"s wireless company, American Movil, in the second quarter means Slim"s worth, according to financial tracker Eduardo Garcia, is close to $67.8 billion compared to an estimated worth of $59.2 billion for Bill Gates.
Based on his past comments, Gates probably isn"t disappointed. At a Microsoft conference in Redmond last year, advertising executive and TV host Donny Deutsch asked Gates if he would be upset if someday he were no longer the world"s richest man.
"I wish I wasn"t," Gates replied. "There"s nothing good that comes out of that."
"It"s better than being second," Deutsch said.
"No," Gates replied. "You get more visibility as a result of it."