From Columbia to Chile, Peru to Portugal and others, Elon Musk has the economic measure of a number of countries.
The world’s richest person had a net worth more than the respective gross domestic products of at least 11 nations as his fortune briefly touched US$500 billion (A$756 billion) on Wednesday.
In fact, his worth probably still exceeds that of their economies even after it slipped back.
A rise in the value of his 12.4% stake in electric vehicle Tesla helped to push his net assets above the previously unattained half a trillion dollar mark, according to the Forbes' billionaires index, but his business interests also include SpaceX and xAI.
The (EV) maker’s share price advanced as investors welcomed his renewed focus on Tesla after a relatively brief foray in politics with President Donald Trump’s team.
SpaceX is reportedly planning to raise money in a deal valuing his 42%-owned rocket firm at around $400 billion, while 53%-held artificial intelligence start-up xAI was reportedly seeking a $200 billion valuation in a capital raising which has not proceeded.
Larry Ellison briefly overtook Musk as the richest person on the planet in September, but Musk has since relegated the Oracle founder back to second place with a net worth of about $350.7 billion.
Musk hit the $100 billion mark in 2020, $200 billion and $300 billion in 2021 and $400 billion in December 2024, putting him on pace to become the first trillionaire by 2033.
But in addressing his $1 trillion Tesla pay package, the South African-born 54-year-old American claimed he was not motivated by money.
“It’s not about ‘compensation’, but about me having enough influence over Tesla to ensure safety if we build millions of robots,” Musk wrote in a post on his X social media site in September.
“If I can just get kicked out in the future by activist shareholder advisory firms who don’t even own Tesla shares themselves, I’m not comfortable with that future.”
