Epidemiological impact, the wealth of the 500 richest people increases by 1 trillion while 150 million people slip into poverty

flies! Not only with private rockets but also with assets that continue to grow. During the past 12 months i The 500 richest people on the planet They saw their wealth increase by Trillion dollars (880 billion euros). In short, it was 2021 Very generous with those in needstingy with others: 150 million people They have slipped into a state of extreme poverty. They are the effects of the epidemic and Interventions carried out by governments and central banks To support economies and markets. Those who are “connected” to these markets in some way are being dragged to the top, while others are down. I witnessed the twelve months that just ended US stock markets rise by nearly 30%, The third consecutive year of double-digit growth. But almost all financial products are concentrated in the hands of the wealthy. In the US, 91% of stock gains went to the richest 10% of the population, for example. The proportions are similar elsewhere.

At the top of the ranking there are still: Elon Musk. A Tesla patron who, according to Bloomberg reconstructed, now has a fortune equal to what John had in the early 20th century D Rockefeller, the “rich” par excellence of Western history. Over the past year, Musk has seen his bank account grow 75%. $273 billion hacked. On the other hand, an almost disappointing year for a “space competitor” Jeff Bezos collected in ‘only’ 4 billion dollars It rises to 194 billion. After all, Bezos had caused quite a stir the year before when he saw, due to the revenue spurt guaranteed by the shutdowns of ordinary businesses associated with shutdowns, Almost double the Amazon shares. On the other hand, 2021 was better for Telsa whose shares rose 45%.

In third place he placed himself first and only european, French Bernard Arn prevail over Lvmh luxury galaxy, This and that is on the invoice 62 billion dollars more Compared to the end of 2020. The usual suspects follow in order Bill Gates (138 billion, + 6.6 billion in 2021), i see page Google (129 billion, + 47 billion), Mark Zuckerberg from Facebook (128 billion, +25 billion), Sergey Brin, Also from Google (124 billion, +45), Steve Ballmer Microsoft (120 billion, +40), financier Warren Buffett (109 billion, +22) and finally Larry Ellison From Oracle (108 billion, up 28 in just one year).

Almost everything would be fine, except that many of them are specialists too In evasion of the tax man Provide support for the most appropriate legislation. For example, Elon Musk recently moved his residence From California to Texas To take advantage of a more favorable tax system. according to Non-Profit Organization Reports Pro publica , who had access to classified information, the world champion in tax evasion is the elderly American financier Warren Buffett Which, moreover, does not miss an opportunity to publicly complain about the inequality of the American tax system at the expense of the most disadvantaged groups. Buffett manages to pay 0.1% tax rate to increase his wealth. A bit like a taxpayer 20/30 euros in one year. In second place there is, Jeff Bezos, this pays”Well 0.98%. Then Michel Bloomberg (1.3%) and in fourth place Elon Musk by 3.7%. Over the past year, the Tesla boss has executed a complex and massive sale and buyback of the auto manufacturer’s shares, possibly for tax reasons. A portion of the proceeds will be used to pay IRS amounts owed but not paid in prior years.

He criticized Musk on multiple occasions Discuss the proposal To the US Congress to impose taxes on unrealized profits. The reason these billionaires pay no taxes is relatively simple. The increase in their wealth stems almost exclusively from the growth in the value of their holdings. In short, it is not income from work. These capital gains are subject to tax only When the contribution is sold, In theory never even. The hypothesis was discussed in Congress, similar to the economist’s proposal Gabriel ZucmanOn the other hand, it aims to tax a portion of the increases in the value of equity investments regardless of their sale.