Bloomberg reported that the Tesla CEO’s continuous upheaval on Twitter is causing Bitcoin prices to plunge further. In fact, Musk’s own net worth is following a similar trend.
On Monday, the CEO of Tesla lost his title as the second richest person in the world to LVMH Chairman Bernard Arnault as Tesla’s stock fell by 2.2%. This drop was the highest in the past week amidst a turmoil in tech stocks and signals that Tesla is facing challenges in China.
Back in March, Musk still held the number one position on Bloomberg’s rankings. Currently, his net worth is only $160.6 billion, down 24% from the peak in January.
This comes at a chaotic time as Bitcoin’s price has dropped below $45,000 for the first time in nearly three months after Musk seemed to agree with a Twitter post stating that Tesla had sold all of its Bitcoin purchased for $1.5 billion earlier this year. Bitcoin was trading at $45,270 at 5:51 PM on Sunday in New York, down about $4,000 from its close on Friday. However, soon after, Musk clarified that he had not sold any Bitcoin.
“To clarify the rumors, Tesla has not sold any Bitcoin.”
Last week, Elon Musk stirred the cryptocurrency market with a series of surprising actions. He caused Bitcoin’s price to drop nearly $10,000 in just a few hours last Wednesday after stating that Tesla would no longer accept payments in this cryptocurrency.
A few days prior, Musk appeared on “Saturday Night Live” and joked about Dogecoin, causing the price of that cryptocurrency to plummet as well. A few days later, Musk tweeted that he was working with Doge developers to improve transaction efficiency.
At the beginning of February, Musk revealed that Tesla had used $1.5 billion of its nearly $20 billion in excess cash to buy Bitcoin. This immediately caused Bitcoin’s price to soar.
Musk, 49, became the richest person in the world in January after Tesla’s stock surged by 750% over the past year. Despite reporting record quarterly profits, Tesla’s stock has since declined amid a global chip shortage and increasing competition.
Musk’s wealth has decreased by $9.1 billion this year, the largest drop among billionaires on Bloomberg’s list.
Meanwhile, luxury mogul Arnault, 72, has seen his wealth rise sharply with an additional $47 billion.