Elon Musk net worth: why Tesla owner is no longer richest person in the world following Bitcoin investment

Jeff Bezos has returned to the top spot on the rich list
Elon Musk's net worth dropped by $15bn in one day (Getty Images)Elon Musk's net worth dropped by $15bn in one day (Getty Images)
Elon Musk's net worth dropped by $15bn in one day (Getty Images)

Elon Musk is no longer the richest person in the world.

His loss of the title came following a slide in the price of Tesla shares – the main source of his wealth.

The drop in Tesla’s value saw $15bn wiped off Musk’s value, pushing Amazon owner Jeff Bezos back to the top of the world’s most wealthy individuals.

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Here’s why Musk is no longer the richest person in the world.

Why did Tesla price drop?

Tesla’s price has largely been attributed to its investment in Bitcoin.

The firm invested $1.5bn (£1bn) in the often volatile cryptocurrency.

Its thought that investors sold shares following a drop in Bitcoin’s value earlier this week.

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Analyst Dan Ives of Wedbush Securities said that the fates of the two companies were now tied together.

He said: “by Musk and Tesla aggressively embracing Bitcoin... investors are starting to tie Bitcoin and Tesla at the hip.”

"The recent 48-hour sell-off in Bitcoin and added volatility has driven some investors to the exits on this name in the near-term."

Musk also recently pulled the Model Y SUV citing desires to boost the entry-level model’s range.

Why did Bitcoin drop in value?

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The start of this week was marked by a sell-off of the cryptocurrency.

Bitcoin’s value had jumped by 50% following Tesla’s announcement hat it would accept payment in the form of the cryptocurrency.

At the start of the week one Bitcoin was valued at just shy of £40,000, but as of February 24 that value has dropped to £34,523.52.

Comments by Musk may be partially responsible for the drop in value. The weekend before the sell-off he said that the price of Bitcoin did "seem high lol".

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US Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen also may have caused owners of the currency to sell-off, saying on Monday that Bitcoin was an "extremely inefficient way of conducting transactions".

How much are Elon Musk and Jeff Bezos worth?

Following the drop in Tesla’s value Musk is now worth $183 billion

At the peak of his wealth in January he had been worth $210 billion.

Jeff Bezos, the owner of Amazon, is once again the richest person in the world.

He is worth an estimated $186 billion.

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Amazon’s value has soared during the global pandemic with UK spenders alone spending £20 billion in 2020 via the e-commerce giant.

He announced he would be stepping down as chief executive of Amazon in the second half of 2021, handing the reins to Andy Jassy, CEO of AWS.

Mr Bezos, who will become Amazon’s executive chairman, wrote in a blog post to staff: “I will stay engaged in important Amazon initiatives but also have the time and energy I need to focus on the Day 1 Fund, the Bezos Earth Fund, Blue Origin, The Washington Post, and my other passions.

“I’ve never had more energy, and this isn’t about retiring.”