Jeff Bezos, Elon Musk, Mark Zuckerberg and 28 Other Billionaires Each Have More Money Than the U.S. Treasury

Cash levels at the U.S. Treasury have dropped more than $200 billion in less than a month amid the debt ceiling controversy.

By Sam Silverman May 30, 2023
Morocko | Shutterstock

Opinions expressed by Entrepreneur contributors are their own.

Some of the world’s wealthiest billionaires have deeper pockets than the U.S. Treasury has in the bank.

Amid the ongoing debt ceiling controversy, the U.S. Treasury’s cash flow dropped more than $200 billion in less than a month, per CNN, and reported only $38.8 billion in cash at the end of the business day on May 25, according to federal data — which means the country has less in the bank than 31 billionaires on Bloomberg’s Billionaires Index.

The wealthiest man in the world, LVMH Chairman Bernard Arnault, is worth an estimated $193 billion, while Elon Musk sits at $185 billion. Jeff Bezos is next with $144 billion, followed by Bill Gates at $126 billion. Mark Zuckerberg sits at No. 10 with his $95.5 billion.

Even Michael Dell, No. 24 on the list, has out-ranked the U.S. with a net worth of $54.5 billion.

RELATED: ‘Catastrophic’: Here’s What You Should Know About the Debt Ceiling Crisis—And How a Default Could Impact Your Business

The country’s cash flow looked bleak after the U.S. racked up more than $31.4 trillion in debt in January, followed by fears that the U.S. could run out of funds by June 5 if the debt ceiling isn’t raised.

A bill was proposed on Sunday that would suspend the debt ceiling until Jan. 1, 2025, with nearly $2 trillion in spending cuts. The House has 72 hours to read the bill before they can vote.

Some of the world’s wealthiest billionaires have deeper pockets than the U.S. Treasury has in the bank.

Amid the ongoing debt ceiling controversy, the U.S. Treasury’s cash flow dropped more than $200 billion in less than a month, per CNN, and reported only $38.8 billion in cash at the end of the business day on May 25, according to federal data — which means the country has less in the bank than 31 billionaires on Bloomberg’s Billionaires Index.

The wealthiest man in the world, LVMH Chairman Bernard Arnault, is worth an estimated $193 billion, while Elon Musk sits at $185 billion. Jeff Bezos is next with $144 billion, followed by Bill Gates at $126 billion. Mark Zuckerberg sits at No. 10 with his $95.5 billion.

Even Michael Dell, No. 24 on the list, has out-ranked the U.S. with a net worth of $54.5 billion.

RELATED: ‘Catastrophic’: Here’s What You Should Know About the Debt Ceiling Crisis—And How a Default Could Impact Your Business

The country’s cash flow looked bleak after the U.S. racked up more than $31.4 trillion in debt in January, followed by fears that the U.S. could run out of funds by June 5 if the debt ceiling isn’t raised.

A bill was proposed on Sunday that would suspend the debt ceiling until Jan. 1, 2025, with nearly $2 trillion in spending cuts. The House has 72 hours to read the bill before they can vote.

The rest of this article is locked.

Join Entrepreneur+ today for access.

Subscribe Now

Already have an account? Sign In

Sam Silverman

Content Strategy Editor
Sam Silverman is a content strategy editor at Entrepreneur Media. She specializes in search engine optimization (SEO), and her work can be found in The US Sun, Nicki Swift, In Touch Weekly, Life & Style and Health. She writes for our news team with a focus on investigating scandals. Her coverage and expertise span from...

Related Content