Tesla’s big moment: Elon Musk’s wealth rises by nearly $11 billion

• Elon Musk’s wealth soared by nearly $11 billion since he took the stand on Friday in the “funding secured” trial.
• The Tesla CEO ‘s net worth rose $10.6 billion to $145.2 billion, marking the biggest two-day gain since November.
• Elon Musk’s wealth gain comes as he defends his 2018 tweet to take Tesla private for $420 per share in court.

While Elon Musk is facing lawsuits in San Francisco for his infamous “funding secured” tweet net worth has rapidly increased to nearly $11 billion this week since he took the stand in a civil court.

According the Bloomberg Billionaire’s Index, the Tesla and SpaceX CEO’s net worth increased by about $10.6 billion to $145.2 billion since his testimony in court Friday last week. That marks the largest two-day gain since November.

Musk faces charges from Tesla shareholders after tweeting he had “funding secured” to take Tesla private at $420 per share back in 2018. However, the deal never materialised, and investors are suing Elon Musk for billions of dollars in damages.

In court, the billionaire defended the tweet, saying it was not a joke because he thought he had funding secured from Saudi Arabia’s Investment Fund. He even blamed a major Saudi Arabian investor for later “backpedaling” and “ass-covering” to slip out of the deal.

Elon Musk also testified in court that he counted on selling SpaceX stock to take Tesla private when he posted the notorious tweet. “SpaceX stock alone meant ‘funding secured’ by itself,” he said.

The tech expert’s wealth gain almost makes up for Musk’s loss of $13 billion so far in 2023. Last year, he became the first and only person in history to lose $200 billion from their net worth.

Much of Musk’s wealth is tied up in shares of Tesla. But the carmaker’s stock had a bumpy 2022, falling almost 70% as investors questioned Musk’s commitment to Tesla following his $44 billion Twitter takeover. His net worth has now fallen about $195 billion from its peak, according to online opinions.