Jeff Bezos sells over $3 billion in Amazon shares, becomes 2nd richest person

Amazon founder Jeff Bezos has sold over $3 billion in Amazon shares, according to a regulatory filing disclosed on Friday.

This brings his total Amazon stock sales for 2024 to more than $13 billion. Bezos sold more than 16 million shares as Amazon’s stock again approached $200 per share, reaching that level back in July when Bezos also sold shares. That marked the stock’s highest value since Amazon’s 1997 NASDAQ debut, Geek Wire reported.

The sale follows Amazon’s strong third-quarter earnings report, which exceeded expectations.

With a net worth of $222 billion, Bezos ranks as the second-richest person on the Bloomberg Billionaires Index, up $42.8 billion year-over-year due to Amazon’s stock performance. Elon Musk continues to dominate first spot.

As of February, Bezos held roughly 10.8 per cent of Amazon’s outstanding shares.

In other news, Bezos, also the owner of the Washington Post, commented on the newspaper’s recent decision to stop endorsing presidential candidates, stating it addresses a “credibility gap” in the media industry.

In an essay on the Post’s website, Bezos said, “Most people believe the media is biased. Anyone who doesn’t see this is paying scant attention to reality.”