Tesla shares: How Musk made history with the biggest loss of personal wealth ever recorded
The ongoing woes at social media microblogging site Twitter have impacted hugely on the wealth of its owner, the world’s richest person Elon Musk.
Musk lost an estimated £135bn between November 2021 and December 2022, according to Guinness World Records. This means he holds the record for the largest ever loss of a personal fortune.
Elon Musk’s fortune was hammered by 65 per cent drop in Tesla’s share value, with investors in the electric automobile company shunning the stock following his controversial takeover of Twitter.
Users are reportedly also ditching their Tesla cars due to Musk’s unpopular regime at Twitter. “I don’t want to be a brand ambassador for them anymore,” software executive John Bryne was quoted saying.
The Guinness World Records have calculated the loss on the basis of the companies’ share values and Musk’s personal wealth hit after his £36bn ($44bn) Twitter deal could be even higher.
The previous record for largest loss to personal fortune was held by Japanese tech investor Masayoshi Son in 2000; at the time it was nearly £47bn.
“Musk’s net worth dropped from a peak of $320bn in 2021 to $138bn as of January 2023, largely due to the poor performance of Tesla’s stock,” Guinness World Records said in a statement.