Elon Musk: How he became the first person to lose $200 billion!

Elon Musk became the second individual to amass a fortune of more than $200 billion, doing it in January 2021, a few months after Jeff Bezos.

But now, the founder of Tesla and SpaceX, as well as the owner of Twitter, has “achieved” something that no other individual in history has: he has “erased” $200 billion from his fortune.

Musk’s fortune has shrunk to $137 billion as Tesla shares have plummeted. According to Bloomberg figures, his fortune peaked on November 4, 2021, at $340 billion. He was the world’s richest man until a few weeks ago, when he was surpassed by Frenchman Bernard Arnault, owner of the luxury goods conglomerate LVMH.

The challenges for Tesla

Remember that in October 2021, Tesla’s capitalization surpassed $1 trillion, entering the ranks of technological behemoths such as Apple, Microsoft, Amazon, and Alphabet (Google). Despite the fact that its models cover a very small portion of the vehicle industry.

Traditional automakers have now made significant strides toward catching up to Tesla in terms of electrification. With competition heating up and one crisis after another erupting in the global economy, the business is providing a $7,500 discount on its two most popular models to US customers, while apparently preparing to curtail production at its Shanghai plant.

While Tesla tries to catch up, Musk has been preoccupied with Twitter, which he purchased for $44 billion (and by selling off shares in his manufacturer) last October.

In 2022, Tesla shares have dropped 65%, and Musk has sold so many that his stock in the company is no longer his most valuable asset. According to Bloomberg, his stake in SpaceX is worth $44.8 billion, while his stake in Tesla is at $44 billion.

And the Federal Reserve

Of course, Elon Musk has consistently rejected Tesla’s concerns, blaming market volatility and his decreasing fortune on the Federal Reserve and aggressive interest rate hikes. “Tesla is doing better than ever!” he remarked on Twitter on December 16. “We do not influence the Federal Reserve. That is the true issue here.”

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