While global stock markets plunged during the COVID-19 pandemic, shares in healthcare companies developing vaccines, treatments, and diagnostic tests rose sharply.
Moderna CEO Stéphane Bancel became a billionaire, while Alain Mérieux, founder of bioMérieux, where Bancel had previously served as CEO, increased his fortune by approximately $1.5 billion.
Drawing on a Forbes article, this chapter presents ten healthcare billionaires whose wealth rose substantially during the pandemic.

June 24, 2020
The largest increases in wealth were recorded by French billionaire Alain Mérieux, founder of the diagnostics manufacturer bioMérieux, where Bancel served as CEO until 2011, and
The following is an article from Forbes that I discovered on the internet a short while ago.
All emphasis within the text, apart from the headings, is mine.
Business
May 11, 2020, 11:30 a.m.
Ten Healthcare Billionaires Whose Fortunes Increased During the COVID-19 Pandemic
Since the World Health Organization, WHO, declared the novel coronavirus outbreak a pandemic on March 11, stock markets around the world have plunged, and the Dow Jones Industrial Average recorded its worst decline since 1987.
The stock market subsequently recovered to some extent, but even amid that turmoil, the shares of healthcare-related companies continued to rise steadily without suffering any significant damage.
The share prices of companies working to develop the vaccines, treatments, and diagnostic kits needed to bring the outbreak of the novel virus to an end have risen sharply over the past two months.
As a result, one new billionaire, a person with assets worth at least one billion dollars, has emerged, while at least nine existing billionaires have substantially increased their fortunes.
The person who newly joined the ranks of billionaires was Stéphane Bancel, chief executive officer, CEO, of Moderna, which is headquartered in Massachusetts in the United States.
On March 16, the company began the first clinical trial of a vaccine against the novel virus in Seattle.
Bancel’s fortune stood at $720 million when the WHO declared the pandemic.
Moderna’s shares subsequently rose by 103 percent, pushing the value of Bancel’s fortune to $1.5 billion, approximately 160 billion yen.
Bancel’s fortune surpassed one billion dollars on April 2, when Moderna’s shares rose following news that the company was planning to begin a Phase 2 trial of its vaccine.
His increase of 109 percent was the highest percentage gain among the billionaires on the list.
The second-highest increase was the 32 percent gain recorded by serial entrepreneur Gustavo Denegri, whose fortune reached $4.5 billion.
He substantially increased his wealth through his ownership of a 45 percent stake in the Italian biotechnology company DiaSorin.
The largest increases in absolute wealth were recorded by two people.
They were French billionaire Alain Mérieux, founder of the diagnostics manufacturer bioMérieux, where Bancel served as CEO until 2011, and Seo Jung-jin, chairman of the South Korean biopharmaceutical company Celltrion.
Each increased his fortune by approximately $1.5 billion after March 11.
Both bioMérieux and DiaSorin launched diagnostic kits for the novel virus in late March and are playing important roles in strengthening the testing systems for the virus.
The following are ten “healthcare billionaires” whose fortunes increased after March 11 as a result of the novel coronavirus outbreak.
・Stéphane Bancel
Nationality: French
Net worth: $1.5 billion, an increase of 109 percent since March 11
Source of wealth: Moderna
・Gustavo Denegri
Nationality: Italian
Net worth: $4.5 billion, an increase of 32 percent
Source of wealth: DiaSorin
・Seo Jung-jin
Nationality: South Korean
Net worth: $8.4 billion, an increase of 22 percent
Source of wealth: Celltrion
・Alain Mérieux
Nationality: French
Net worth: $7.6 billion, an increase of 25 percent
Source of wealth: bioMérieux
・Maja Oeri
Nationality: Swiss
Net worth: $3.2 billion, an increase of 10 percent
Source of wealth: Roche
・Leonard Schleifer
Nationality: American
Net worth: $2.2 billion, an increase of 11 percent
Source of wealth: Regeneron Pharmaceuticals
・George Yancopoulos
Nationality: American
Net worth: $1.2 billion, an increase of 14 percent
Source of wealth: Regeneron Pharmaceuticals
・Thomas Strüngmann
Nationality: German
Net worth: $6.9 billion, an increase of 11 percent
Source of wealth: BioNTech
・Andreas Strüngmann
Nationality: German
Net worth: $6.9 billion, an increase of 11 percent
Source of wealth: BioNTech
・Li Xiting
Nationality: Singaporean
Net worth: $12.6 billion, an increase of 1 percent
Source of wealth: Mindray