Elon Musk Becomes the World’s First Trillionaire... 1.5 Times the South Korean Government Budget for Next Year

[Financial News] Elon Musk, CEO of Tesla, has seen his personal fortune rise to $749 billion (approximately 1,110 trillion won). This is 1.5 times the South Korean Government Budget for Next Year (about 728 trillion won).
According to Forbes, this marks the first time an individual’s assets have surpassed $700 billion.
This development follows a decision by the Delaware Supreme Court, which dismissed a minority shareholder’s appeal regarding Tesla’s 2018 CEO compensation plan and upheld the package, including the granting of stock options.
At the time, Tesla’s CEO compensation plan awarded Musk stock options equivalent to 304 million shares, or 9% of Tesla’s issued shares, based on his management performance. Musk achieved all the targets set at the time, such as 'tenfold market capitalization in ten years.' As a result, he was able to receive a 2023 compensation valued at $56 billion (about 84 trillion won).
However, a minority shareholder filed a lawsuit claiming that Musk’s performance was overstated and the payout was excessive. In January last year, the Delaware court also invalidated the compensation plan, calling it 'incomprehensible.'
In response, Musk and Tesla’s board appealed the ruling. On the 19th, the Delaware Supreme Court overturned the lower court’s decision and concluded that Musk is entitled to stock-based compensation.
The stock option package was valued at $56 billion (about 82.936 trillion won) in 2018, but at current share prices, it is now worth $139 billion (about 205.859 trillion won). Tesla’s share price has also soared from around $20 per share in 2018 to nearly $500 today, further increasing the value of the stock options.
Separately, at last month’s General Meeting of Shareholders, a plan was approved to grant Musk a $1 trillion (about 1,476 trillion won) compensation package if he achieves management goals, including a market capitalization of $8.5 trillion.


moon@fnnews.com Moon Young-jin Reporter