Jeff Bezos, chief executive officer of Amazon, has sold 994,900 shares in the online retail giant worth over $1 billion, according to a filing with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission. It is not immediately clear where the money will proceed, but industry watchers are speculating that Bezos might be seeking to invest in a spaceship project.
Last April, the internet billionaire shared his goal of funding Blue Origin LLC, a company that aims to send people into space, by selling $1 billion in Amazon stock every year.
On October 27, Amazon’s stock rose by a whopping 13 percent, generating earnings for the company that surpassed its third-quarter forecast and prompting Bezos to sell a few of his shares. As a result, Bezos also became the world’s richest man, a spot he stole briefly from Microsoft co-founder Bill Gates in July but recently regained in the last couple of weeks.
The surge in the value of Amazon stock catapulted Bezos to the top slot with more than $90 billion in net worth, eclipsing that of Gates. As Bezos has now banked a billion dollars, it remains to be seen what he plans next for his space initiative.
Source: US Securities and Exchange Commission via CNET