World’s Wealthiest CEOs Feel The Pinch

It is true that rich get richer a lot faster than most. That also means they can lose their shirts a lot faster, too. The WSJ has a list of uber-rich CEOs who have lost in recent weeks billions of dollars in stock in their own companies.

Warren Buffett tops that list with losses nearing $10 billion this year alone. According to an analysis by Steven Hall & Partners, a compensation-consulting firm, the value of Mr. Buffett’s equity in Berkshire Hathaway (BRK-A) declined more than that of any other big-company chief executive.

Other major declines in CEO net worth include CEO of Oracle (ORCL), Larry Ellison who so far has lost $6.6 bln, Steve Ballmer of Microsoft (MSFT) is also down substantially, showing a $4.8 bln loss. Jeff Bezos of Amazon (AMZN) is negative by $4.2 bln and News Corp.’s Rupert Murdoch (NWS), has seen the value of his stock shrink by nearly $4 billion. Most of these CEOs, have their greenbacks tied up in the companies they founded, except Mr. Buffett who bought a controlling stake in Berkshire in the 1960s, and Ballmer who has been at Microsoft since 1980.

The net worth of chief executives, notes the Journal - at 175 of the U.S.’s biggest companies has seen a continuing wealth erosion. The value of their equity in their own company has declined by a cumulative $42.3 billion from the end of their most recent fiscal year through last week. All results include stock, exercisable and non-exercisable stock options, and un-vested shares.

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