Elon Musk.Photo: Taylor Hill/Getty Images; Getty Images
Elon Muskhas scraped off about $92 billion of his wealth this year after purchasing Twitter, the platform that he is now considering putting entirely behind a paywall, according to multiple reports.
Bloomberg reported that shares of Musk’s other business venture, Tesla Inc. — which makes up the biggest part of his fortune —were traded as low as $186.75on Tuesday.
Per the outlet, the drop in value is due to investors in the electric car company raising concerns after his acquisition of Twitter.
Representatives for Tesla Inc. did not immediately respond to PEOPLE’s request for comment.
Elon Musk.Pascal Le Segretain/Getty
As a result, Musk, 51, is now worth $177 billion. His wealth reached its peak last year at $340 billion when Tesla’s shares were traded at a record price of $410. His current net worth, however, did not impact his title as the richest person in the world, Bloomberg reported.
Late last month, heclosed a $44 billion dealto purchase Twitter. Musk — who reportedly borrowed $12 billion to be able to afford the sale — has considered other ways to generate revenue for the company, includingcharging a subscription fee to most or all users, according to The Verge.
A source familiar with the situation told the outlet that the Tesla CEO and one of his advisers, venture capitalist David Sacks, have discussed the idea of the platform-wide paywall in recent meetings.
Representatives for Musk and Twitter did not immediately return PEOPLE’s requests for comment.
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Last week, days after acquiring the San Francisco-based firm, Musklet goof many of Twitter’s 7,500 employees. According to The Verge, the company sought to bring back some of those employees within hours of the layoffs.
Employees are asking the court to issue an order that would require Twitter to follow the WARN Act and restrict the company from urging employees to sign documents that could give up their right to pursue legal action against it.
Musk also recently launched Twitter’snew $8 monthly subscription service, Twitter Blue, which will allow any Twitter user to easily attain a blue checkmark symbol, something that was previously reserved to verify government accounts and notable figures, such as celebrities, politicians, and journalists.
The company has since decided todelay its rollout until after the midterm elections, perThe New York Times.
source: people.com
