Elon Musk is no longer a trillionaire after a sharp decline in the value of SpaceX shares wiped hundreds of billions of dollars from his personal fortune, ending a brief period in which he became the first person in history to build a net worth of more than $1 trillion.
Musk crossed the trillion dollar milestone after SpaceX’s highly anticipated stock market debut sparked a surge in investor demand. At its peak, his fortune was estimated at about $1.3 trillion, driven largely by the soaring value of his stake in the aerospace company.
However, the rally proved short lived. SpaceX shares have fallen by nearly half since reaching their post listing high in June, reducing the company’s market value and cutting Musk’s wealth by an estimated $600 billion. His net worth has now dropped to below $700 billion. Despite the decline, he remains the richest person in the world by a wide margin.
The sharp fall has surprised many investors because SpaceX continues to perform strongly as a business. The company recently completed another Starship test flight that successfully deployed Starlink satellites, restarted a Raptor engine in space and returned the spacecraft to the ocean. Although the Super Heavy booster failed to complete a controlled landing, analysts said the mission marked significant technical progress.
Market experts say the decline has been driven more by investor sentiment than by SpaceX’s business performance. Following its stock market debut, the company’s share price climbed rapidly, pushing its valuation to levels many investors believed were difficult to justify. As enthusiasm cooled, many shareholders began selling to lock in profits, leading to a steep correction.
Investors have also become cautious ahead of SpaceX’s first earnings report as a publicly traded company. At the same time, a large number of insider shares are expected to become eligible for sale in the coming weeks, raising concerns that additional stock entering the market could place further pressure on the share price.
The decline in Musk’s fortune has also been compounded by Tesla’s recent struggles. The electric vehicle maker has reported weaker than expected financial results, while slowing sales in key markets and increased competition have weighed on its share price. Because much of Musk’s wealth is tied to his holdings in both Tesla and SpaceX, declines in the two companies have combined to produce one of the largest losses of personal wealth ever recorded.
Another factor that has attracted investor attention is Musk’s growing involvement in politics. Over the past year, his close association with President Donald Trump’s administration and his leadership of the Department of Government Efficiency, popularly known as DOGE, drew both support and criticism from investors and the public.
In a recent interview with The Economist, Musk admitted that his political involvement had gone further than he intended. Reflecting on that period, he said he had become “carried away” by politics and acknowledged that his focus had shifted away from running his businesses. The billionaire also indicated that he now intends to devote more of his time to SpaceX, Tesla and his other companies.
While analysts do not believe Musk’s political activities directly caused the collapse in his fortune, many say they contributed to growing concerns among investors about whether he was sufficiently focused on leading his companies. Those concerns, combined with the sharp correction in SpaceX shares and Tesla’s recent weakness, have weighed heavily on market confidence.
Despite the recent selloff, analysts remain optimistic about SpaceX’s long term prospects. The company continues to dominate the commercial space launch industry, expand its Starlink satellite internet service and secure major contracts from governments and private organisations around the world. Several Wall Street analysts believe the company’s long term growth potential remains intact and have maintained price targets above its current share price.
According to Musk, losing his trillionaire status is more symbolic than financially damaging. Even after the historic decline, he remains the world’s wealthiest individual, underscoring both the enormous scale of his business empire and the volatility that comes with fortunes built largely on publicly traded company shares.