Tesla, SpaceX, and Twitter CEO Elon Musk saw his wealth plummet by $US100 ($AU150) billion dollars this year, bringing his net worth to somewhere between $US170 ($AU255) billion and $US182 ($AU273) billion, according to estimates from Bloomberg and Forbes. That’s down from an estimated $US340 ($AU511) billion in November 2021. The drop comes as Tesla shares decreased to a two-year low this week, reducing Musk’s wealth by about $US8.6 ($AU12.94) billion in just one day.
Musk reportedly owns around a 15 per cent stake in Tesla shares which has decreased by 58.03% year to date, according to Bloomberg. He sold nearly $US15.5 ($AU23.32) billion of his Tesla stock to finance his purchase of Twitter earlier this month.
Tesla accounts for the bulk of Musk’s fortune but has faced revenue decreases due to the ongoing covid-19 restrictions in China and a recent recall of 300,000 Tesla vehicles due to faulty taillights in addition to soaring costs of materials. His net worth continued to take a hit after he acquired Twitter for $US44 ($AU61) billion — the largest buyout of a technology company in history.
Musk also had to recently defend the near $US56 ($AU84) billion payment package Tesla handed him years ago in court. Richard Tornetta, who owns some Tesla shares, filed the lawsuit back in 2019 claiming the Tesla board offered Musk an overly generous pay package even though he was spending only about half his time at the electric car maker. His new hobby as ‘Chief Twit’ has only amplified claims that he’s spreading himself too thin.
Despite the setbacks, Musk still remains the wealthiest person in the world, coming in above the runner-up, Bernard Arnault, by around $US65 ($AU97) billion. Musk is not the only tech executive whose net worth has dropped this year, as Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg, Amazon founder Jeff Bezos’, and Alphabet co-founder Larry Page have all also experienced significant financial setbacks according to Bloomberg.