
Billionaires have had a bad year.
Globally, the world’s billionaires lost nearly $2 trillion, combined, in 2022, according to Forbes. The United States’ billionaires lost $660 billion collectively, the highest of any country by Forbes’s count, as tech stock prices took a nosedive fueled by rising interest rates, soaring inflation and a worsening economy.
Of America’s billionaires, Tesla, SpaceX, and newly minted Twitter CEO Elon Musk saw his fortune diminish the most. Musk’s net worth dipped by about $115 billion this year, according to Forbes.
In October, when Musk bought Twitter for $44 billion, he sold off about $23 billion in Tesla shares to fund the acquisition. He has since acknowledged this deal was an “obvious” overpayment. More recently, he confirmed his plans to step down as CEO of the social media platform once he finds a suitable replacement.
Tesla’s stock price is down nearly 70% year-to-date, as of Dec. 27. Longtime Tesla investors are calling on its board of directors to get Musk to refocus on the electric vehicle company.