Zoom CEO's wealth jumps US$5.2b after sales surge

[SAN JOSE] Zoom Video Communications' Eric Yuan extended the scorching pace of his wealth accumulation on Tuesday.

Mr Yuan's net worth soared by US$5.2 billion as shares of his virtual-meeting company surged 32 per cent to US$429.28 at 9.34 am in New York following Monday's report of a jump in quarterly revenue. The boost lifted the chief executive officer's fortune to almost US$22 billion, according to the Bloomberg Billionaires Index.

It's been a year filled with eye-popping rallies for the richest names in the tech world - Amazon.com's Jeff Bezos saw his net worth grow by US$13 billion in one day in July, and Tesla's Elon Musk added US$8 billion in 24 hours last month. Both men have reached record levels of wealth, with Bezos crossing US$200 billion and Musk surpassing US$100 billion last week.

Zoom has been one of the clearest beneficiaries of the coronavirus pandemic, with businesses and educational institutions turning to the service to work and teach remotely.

The software maker reported Monday that sales jumped 355 per cent to US$663.5 million in the three months through July 31 from a year earlier. It was the second-largest surge among Nasdaq 100 Index members last quarter, only behind biotech firm Moderna, data compiled by Bloomberg show. Zoom said sales will be as much as US$2.39 billion in the fiscal year ending in January, meaning revenue would almost quadruple in just one year.

The founder of the San Jose, California-based company, whose net worth is mostly made up of his more than 50 million Zoom shares, is one of the biggest gainers this year. Mr Yuan, 50, was US$12.8 billion richer as of the Monday close after the stock surged almost fivefold.

BLOOMBERG