Microsoft's Ballmer $560M richer on resignation

Roger Yu | USA TODAY

Steve Ballmer's ego may be taking a hit Friday as the stock market jumps on the news that he will step down as CEO of Microsoft, but it also made him and his colleagues instantly richer – at least on paper.

Ballmer owns about 333.3 million shares, or about $10.8 billion worth of the stock, according to Microsoft's latest proxy. With the stock up about 5.2% in late morning trading, he's about $560 million richer.

Bill Gates, Microsoft's chairman, owns about $14.9 billion worth of the stock, which means he's about $774 million better off today than yesterday.

Microsoft's executives and directors as a group -- 19 individuals -- collectively are $1.34 billion wealthier today.

AllThingsD, the technology news site that pointed out Ballmer's sudden windfall from his resignation, also says Microsoft's market capitalization fell about $330 million during his tenure as CEO.