$348 Billion: Thanks to Trump's Victory, Musk Becomes the Richest Man in History
Elon Musk's fortune reached a record $347.8 billion on 22 November, thanks to the rise in the price of Tesla Inc shares, Bloomberg reports.
According to the Bloomberg Billionaires Index, Musk broke his own record set in November 2021, when his fortune reached $340.4 billion. In total, since 4 November, his wealth, more than two-thirds of which is made up of Tesla shares and options, has increased by 35%.
It is noted that Musk's companies have risen sharply in value after Donald Trump's victory in the presidential election.
Tesla shares rose by 3.8% yesterday, and by 45% on 4 November, the day before the presidential election, adding about $350 billion to its market value.
Meanwhile, the value of AI startup xAI has more than doubled since May, boosted by Trump's victory.
Musk, 53, joined Trump's campaign at the final stage, campaigning with him in the states, and personally donated more than $170 million to support the Republican candidate.
Members of Trump's transition team have indicated that they plan to make a federal framework for self-driving cars a priority for the Department of Transportation, which is likely to enable wider adoption.
The current federal policy allows Tesla and other automakers to produce only 2,500 fully autonomous vehicles per year.
In addition, Trump is in favour of cancelling tax credits for electric vehicles of up to $7,500 and reducing emission standards introduced by the administration of President Joe Biden.
Musk will also become one of the heads of the newly created Department of Government Efficiency, which, according to him, will focus on fighting bureaucracy and reducing the number of regulations.
Elon Musk's SpaceX company launched a Super Heavy-Starship reusable spacecraft on Tuesday, with US President-elect Donald Trump attending the launch.