Zoom founder is $2 billion richer

Zoom Video Communications Inc.'s upbeat revenue forecast sent shares of the company surging. For its founder, that translates into a $2 billion (Dh7.36 billion) wealth bump.

Eric Yuan, who owns almost one-fifth of the video-conferencing company, is now worth about $22 billion, according to the Bloomberg Billionaires Index. The stock jumped as much as 12 per cent late in the US on Monday as Zoom said revenue could climb 43 per cent in fiscal 2022, more than the 37 per cent analysts tracked by Bloomberg estimated on average. Shares climbed 7.8 per cent to $441.56 in premarket trading Tuesday.

Yuan has been one of the biggest winners in the fallout of the coronavirus crisis that forced people to stay home and find new ways to work, shop, learn and entertain themselves. But with multiple vaccines rolling out, questions have been growing about whether companies that did well during the pandemic would continue their meteoric growth. Zoom shares jumped almost 400 per cent last year, making Yuan one of the biggest gainers on the Bloomberg wealth index, and they're up more than 20 per cent in 2021.

"We believe we are well positioned for strong growth with our innovative video-communications platform, on which our customers can build, run, and grow their businesses; our globally recognised brand; and a team ever focused on delivering happiness to our customers," Yuan said in the earnings statement.

The San Jose, California-based company expects sales of as much as $3.78 billion in fiscal 2022, with profit excluding some items potentially reaching $3.65 per share. Revenue more than tripled to $882.5 million in the fourth quarter and earnings excluding some items climbed to $1.22 cents a share, beating the average analyst projection.