According to Teslarati, Tesla’s stock soared in 2022 and CEO Elon Musk’s net worth, being the company’s largest shareholder, also declined significantly.
So great was the fall that Guinness World Records recently announced that Elon Musk holds the record for the largest loss of personal wealth in history.
Forbes estimates Elon Musk has lost about $182 billion through November 2021, though other estimates put the Tesla CEO’s net worth closer to $200 billion. These losses surpassed the previous record of $58.6 billion set by Japanese tech investor Masayoshi Son in 2000.
Today, Musk is listed on the Bloomberg Billionaires Index with an estimated net worth of $126 billion. It’s not a small amount by any means, but it’s a far cry from Musk’s $320 billion net worth in 2021.
Elon Musk’s financial losses in 2022 saw him lose his status as the world’s richest person to Bernard Arnault, the founder of luxury goods conglomerate LVMH (Louis Vuitton Moët Hennessy). Arnault’s net worth is estimated at $175 billion, far less than Musk’s peak in 2021 but far more than Musk’s net worth today.
Despite its steep decline, Tesla is still ranked as the world’s most valuable automaker, with a market capitalization of over $100 billion, ahead of its closest rival, the Japanese giant carmaker Toyota. Musk has also expressed some confidence in Tesla, despite the challenges over the past year. “Long-term fundamentals are extremely strong. Short-term market craziness is unpredictable,” Musk wrote in a post on Twitter.
Masayoshi Son’s net worth fell from a peak of $78 billion in February 2000 to $19.4 billion in July of the same year, achieving the Guinness World Record for the largest loss of personal fortune in the past. This was due to the value of SoftBank, which was badly affected by the dot-com crash. SoftBank’s position was so volatile that Son’s net worth changed by $5 billion in a single day, and that was back in 2000.
SoftBank later recovered, and acquired several American and British tech companies as it regained momentum. With this, the fortunes of Masayoshi Son also improved. As Elon Musk continues to build his own tech conglomerate, it is possible that his net worth will bounce back.