CZ Surpasses Bill Gates In Wealth With $110B Value

Why Forbes Puts CZ So High

The main driver is Binance. Forbes attributes most of CZ’s wealth to an estimated roughly 90% ownership stake in the exchange and values Binance at about $100 billion. Forbes also points to Binance’s dominant global market share, estimated annual revenue, and massive trading volumes as the basis for that valuation.

In addition, Forbes includes CZ’s holdings in BNB and a relatively small Bitcoin position of about 1,400 BTC. Taken together, those assets have lifted him above other ultra-wealthy names such as Michael Bloomberg in Forbes’ ranking.

Why Bill Gates Is Lower

Gates’ ranking reflects a very different wealth profile. Forbes says his fortune is now spread across a broad investment portfolio rather than being concentrated in Microsoft stock. His net worth has also been reduced over time by large charitable donations and post-divorce wealth adjustments.

So this is not just a story about CZ getting richer. It is also about Gates continuing to give away large amounts of wealth while CZ’s core asset, Binance, has rebounded sharply.

Source: Forbes Billionaire List

Not Every Ranking Agrees

There is still a major gap between billionaire trackers. Bloomberg’s Billionaires Index currently puts Bill Gates at about $106 billion and ranks him much higher than CZ. Bloomberg places CZ far lower, at around $49 billion.

That difference mostly comes down to methodology. Forbes appears much more aggressive in valuing Binance and CZ’s private holdings, while Bloomberg takes a more conservative view. Other rankings also vary widely. Hurun, for example, recently estimated CZ at just $29 billion.

Bigger Picture

Even with those differences, one point is clear. CZ’s wealth has surged back dramatically after his legal troubles, resignation from Binance leadership, and prison sentence. Forbes now places him among the richest people on earth and ahead of Bill Gates on its list.

So the claim holds if you are using Forbes as the benchmark. It does not hold across every wealth index. That distinction matters, but the headline itself is grounded in Forbes’ current numbers.

UPDATE: In an X comment, CZ mentioned that the numbers were not accurate because of the dip in the Bitocin/crypto markets.