Bill Gates Tops Bloomberg Billionaires — for Now

In the battle of the billionaire lists, Forbes has held the high ground for years. Now, Bloomberg Billionaires has taken a prominent spot in media coverage. That was boosted yesterday when the disgraced news service announced that Microsoft Corp. (NASDAQ: MSFT) founder Bill Gates had moved ahead of Mexican telecom giant Carlos Slim. The net worth of Gates is at $72.7 billion, and for Slim it is $72.1 billion. Since the Bloomberg Billionaires list changes daily, Gates may not hold his position for long.

The balance of the top ten on the list has the usual suspects, at least among America's super rich. At $59.2 billion, Warren Buffett sits in third place. Filthy rich conservative brothers Charles and David Koch have $55.2 billion. Oracle Corp. (NASDAQ: ORCL) founder and America Cup patron Larry Ellison has a $41.6 billion net worth. And Wal-Mart Stores Inc. (NYSE: WMT) founder Sam Walton's children Christy and Jim have $36.1 billion.

When the Forbes list comes out, the Bloomberg one will be forgotten - at least for a day.

Filed under: 24/7 Wall St. Wire, Media, Personal Finance Tagged: MSFT, ORCL, WMT