Larry Ellison Net Worth: Oracle Founder Worth Less Than Half Of Jeff Bezos' Fortune

Larry Ellison’s net worth is $66.5 billion. Here is how the college dropout became one of the wealthiest men in the world.

Ellison had an unfortunate childhood. His parents separated and he was raised by his uncle and aunt because he was a sickly child. He grew up interested in computers, like every tech prodigy who ended up becoming Silicon Valley billionaires. However, he did not graduate in college and had to drop out twice due to some unseen circumstances.

Ellison did not let personal hurdles distract him. Some would say he was at the right place and at the right time when the market of database management began to take traction in the late ‘90s. He founded Oracle, which effectively went head-to-head against more established companies like Sybase and Microsoft at the time.

Oracle was originally named Software Development Laboratories and was given a fund of just $2,000. It again changed its name to Relational Software Inc., before finally settling with Oracle in 1982, per The Street. In 2000, Oracle was tagged as one of the top companies to offer computer server software. Ellison was ranked the third richest person in the U.S., following Bill Gates and Warren Buffett.

Now, Ellison sits on the 6th spot of Forbes’ wealthiest rankings. The cash king is still Amazon CEO Jeff Bezos with $140 billion. When the net worths of the Oracle founder and the Amazon CEO are compared, the former’s fortune pales in comparison. But what makes Ellison unique is that he likes to splurge on investments and also give to those in need.

The New York native owns several properties that carry massive price tags. He acquired a golf course for $43 million in California. Moreover, he bought a $110 million mansion and spent $180 million on 11 residential properties that are also found in the same area.

The 75-year-old billionaire also fancies expensive toys. He has a $194 million yacht, a Gulfstream G50 private jet and a SIAI-Marchetti S.211 military jet. His garage houses some of the impressive car collections any rich people can have. Ellison drives a Lexus LS(XF40), a Lexus LFA, an Acura NSX, and a McLaren F1.

Despite the massive wealth, Ellison remains grounded. According to Business Insider, the tech CEO donated $200 million to a cancer treatment center at the University of Southern California. In 2010, he joined Buffett and Gates in The Giving Pledge after he promised to give away 95 percent of his wealth before he dies.

After stepping down as Oracle CEO in 2014, he went on to invest in Tesla and became a member of its board of directors.