Year | Milestone |
1994 | Jeff Bezos quits his job, launches Amazon. Initial startup capital- his parent’s personal savings |
1995 | Amazon.com goes online with book sales. Bezos raises an $8 Million round of funding from Kleiner Perkins |
1997 | Amazon goes public at $18 per share |
1999 | Bezos named Time Magazine’s “Person of the Year” for popularising online shopping. |
2009 | Bezos acquires Zappos through stock swap |
2013 | Bezos acquires the Washington Post |
2015 | Amazon surpasses Walmart as the most valuable retailer in the United States |
2016 | Becomes the fourth most valuable public company, goes offline with its first bookstore in Seattle |
2017 | Amazon acquires Dubai-based Souq.com, Bezos becomes the second richest person in the world |
Amazon founder Jeff Bezos became the second richest person in the world, moving ahead of when Amazon acquired on 29 March acquired Middle East’s largest online retailer, Souq.com. According to Bloomberg, Bezos added around $1.5 billion to his fortune (now at $75.6 billion) as his company’s share rose to $18.35 billion as of 29 March.