Elon Musk becomes first person in history to amass $400billion fortune

Elon Musk has become the first person in history to amass a fortune of more than $400 billion.

His net worth now stands at around $440 billion (£345 billion), according to the Bloomberg Billionaires Index – more than that of Microsoft founder Bill Gates and Amazon's Jeff Bezos combined.

Mr Musk's fortune has boomed in the weeks following Donald Trump's victory in the US presidential election. 

During the campaign, the X owner served as a major political donor and advocate for his fellow billionaire, and he is expected to wield considerable influence when Mr Trump takes power in January.

Shares in electric car firm Tesla – where Mr Musk, 53, is chief executive – have surged by around 65 per cent since the election, amid hopes that Mr Trump will eliminate tax credits which have helped competitors in the industry.

And the enthusiasm showed no signs of slowing down last night, as the stock hit another record high of around $420. 

Tesla is a major part of Mr Musk's overall wealth. His 12.8 per cent stake in the business is by itself worth nearly $172 billion.

He is also expected to use his co-leadership of the planned Department of Government Efficiency to push through beneficial changes.

In another boost for Mr Musk, investors earlier this week agreed to buy $1.25 billion worth of shares in SpaceX, valuing his rocket and satellite firm at around $350 billion – making it the most valuable start-up business in the world.

The surge is a remarkable turnaround for Musk, whose fortune fell to $137 billion two years ago.