From billionaire boom to trillionaire threat

While the world ponders whether being a billionaire is ethical in these challenging times, another potential dilemma has arisen... trillionaires.

Elon Musk is on track to become the world’s first trillion-dollar man after Tesla shareholders approved a pay package for the founder in the form of additional company shares over the next decade.

CNN reported that the addition of 423.7 million shares over the next 10 years could equate to earning US$275 million ($484m) a day.

It comes at a time when billionaire wealth has surged three times faster last year than the year before, while the number of people living in poverty has barely changed since 1990.

Figures from Oxfam’s January global inequality report showed global billionaire wealth grew by $2t in 2024 alone. In Aotearoa New Zealand, billionaire wealth increased by $5b ($12m per day).

In 2024, the number of billionaires rose to 2,769, up from 2,565 in 2023.

Oxfam’s Nick Henry joins The Front Page to discuss wealth generated by accumulating the benefits of work that other people do.

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