Wealth of $146bn is far from money. Elon Musk is not rich.
Forbes estimates Elon Musk is the second richest person on earth as of today. His real time net worth stands at $146.6 billion. Forbes also states that he owns about 25% of Tesla in stock and options while more than half is blocked for loan collateral. Last year, he lost more than $150 in matter of months, that more than his current net worth amount. Meanwhile Guinnes World Records have officially declared him as the person who lost most personal wealth in history. So, is he rich? Let’s talk about it.
He has wealth but he is not rich
He has stake in 6 different companies and many people tend to believe he is a workaholic. That belief cannot be rejected. Recently Musk fired many twitter staff and warned remaining that he needed hard-core working people. Last year the press was reporting that he slept in Tesla factory. It seems pretty clear to me that he is an absolute workaholic who has almost no time to enjoy his money, at least for now. Having money does not make him rich, in my believe. It is money that makes to enjoy a good life that makes you rich. Therefore, I have to conclude that Elon Musk is not rich, may be one day he will.
More than half of his net worth is not easy cash
Many people think that his fortune is easily convertible to cash if needed. But, that’s not the case. More than half of his wealth is frozen wealth. What you mean by frozen? Well, you can’t buy anything with that amount, it just sits on paper.
Some of his stocks are given to banks as collateral for loan. That’s well known. Elon Musk recently bought Twitter for $44 bn of which some were obtained as bank loan. In addition to this, the massive amounts of stock he owns cannot be simply converted to cash, he could only convert a party, I would say maximum half of this wealth. Why not? If he sells all his shares in Tesla the investor confidence in the company will drastically drop. Therefore, there are stock that he has to hold in order to keep the company value high.
He is not enjoying his time
Rich people owns yachts, horse ranches, hotels, private islands and more. Elon Musk seems to own none of these. Poor guy. All the wealth he has is only keeping him busy, to earn more, perhaps to work even more. It has been noticed that he is lubricated to work in the frontline of Twitter, along with workers he employees. What’s the difference between him and his employees? Must has some wealth on paper. Basically living almost of the same as top Twitter executives.
Also, all rich people visit Maldives. I have so far, not seen Musk here in Maldives. Some years back King of Saudi Arabia visited Maldives, he has several resorts booked for himself and his entourage. His private yacht was anchored near by in case he wished to stay there. There were helicopters flying him everywhere. This is how the rich people live. They enjoy the money. Elon Musk has wealth but so far not rich. When he becomes rich I presume that he would own a private island in Maldives.
Dream of the red planet
You may wonder why is Elon Musk not enjoy a lavish life he could easily afford. He seems to be have an obsession about Mars – the red planet. Therefore, it suggests that he does not want to enjoy on planet earth, for whatever reason. May be because of oxygen existing on earth? What else make it differ? Presence of obsession is clear, what’s unknown is the reason. Someone with information on his private life should shed some insight into this, for its just a mystery.