Amancio Ortego Eclipses Bill Gates as World's Wealthiest for Short Time Friday

The founder of Zara, Amancio Ortega, beat out Bill Gates for a short time Friday as the wealthiest person in the world

The founder of Zara, Amancio Ortega, beat out Bill Gates for a short time Friday as the wealthiest person in the world, as reported by Forbes' real-time rankings of global billionaires.

Ortega became the world’s richest when he reached a staggering $79 billion in net worth in the early hours of the morning, according to Forbes, but then slipped back down to the No. 2 by 9 a.m. CST.

Forbes noted that it as the first time Ortega had eclipsed the most well-known billionaire.

The 79-year-old started his first Zara clothing store in Spain in 1975 before it grew into a global fashion empire.

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