Amazon CEO Jeff Bezos has had what may be the shortest ever stint as the world's richest person.
Mr Bezos was declared richest man in the world on July 27, but the title had been stripped from him by that same afternoon and returned to Microsoft founder Bill Gates after Amazon saw its profits plummet.
In the most recent financial quarter, Amazon recorded profits of US$197 million on sales of US$38 billion, causing its profit to plummet from 77 percent compared to a year ago, The Verge reports.
Mr Bezos is now about US$1billion behind Mr Gates in net worth, with US$88.7 billion compared to Mr Gates' $89.8 billion, according to Forbes calculations.
The drop in Amazon profits is reportedly due to investment in new areas within its business and international expansion.
It's expected that the spar over who is the richest will continue between Mr Gates and Mr Bezos, as the markets fluctuate and both of their fortunes continue to grow.
Mr Bezos is reportedly looking to enter the grocery industry and acquire Whole Foods Market, while both of them compete in the field of cloud computing.
Earlier this week, NBR released its annual New Zealand Rich List. Graeme Hart, as usual, came on top with a fortune worth NZ$7.5 billion - far ahead of second-placed Peter Thiel, a recent arrival.
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