Poor Elon Musk Complains He’s Low On Cash
Elon Musk, one of the top 50 richest people in the world, complained about the lack of liquid assets. He made a confession in court at the suit of the British, demanding compensation from the billionaire for defamation, the size of which is not yet known.
Elon Musk testified on Wednesday in a Los Angeles court as part of a libel trial. During the testimony, the plaintiff's lawyer asked Musk to evaluate his net worth.
The CEO of Tesla and SpaceX replied that he had approximately $20 billion (Forbes estimated $23.6 billion). But Musk added that his liquid assets are relatively small: “Some people think that I have a lot of money. Not really".
This recognition increases interest in litigation. If the jury renders the Mask a verdict with a large amount of foreclosure, it is likely that the billionaire will have to sell part of his stake in Tesla or SpaceX.
According to Forbes, 99% of Mask’s fortunes are securities of both companies, which perfectly explains his lack of cash. For example, in 2018, the lion's share of his compensation in Tesla was issued in the form of stock options. Meanwhile, he refused his basic salary of $ 56,380.
It is important to note that, according to financial documents released this year, the debts of a 48-year-old businessman exceed $ 500 million. This amount includes $ 208.9 million of debt to Morgan Stanley Bank, as well as $213 million that Musk borrowed from a subsidiary of Goldman Sachs. As collateral for these loans, the billionaire indicated almost half of his stake in Tesla.
The entrepreneurial journey Mask began about 20 years ago. He made his first fortune by selling Zip2, a software developer who, in 1999, was bought by Compaq, a computer maker, for $ 300 million. Three years later, the eBay online auction bought out PayPal, a payment startup founded by Musk and other entrepreneurs. The deal amounted to $1.4 billion.
The businessman founded SpaceX in 2002, and Tesla in 2004. According to the biography of Mask published in 2015, the funds received from the sale of PayPal soon almost completely went to new enterprises.
However, Musk claims that more than 250,000 people have already pre-ordered a pickup. However, on Twitter, he also wrote: “Haha! Probably, before the start of production, something else will need to be corrected.”