One’s heart bleeds for Elon Musk. No it doesn’t, just joking. Capitalism's no joke though for the vast majority.
‘A judge in the US state of Delaware has voided Elon Musk’s $56 billion Tesla pay package, arguing that the company’s board of directors had failed to prove that the billionaire CEO deserved such a high compensation. Musk responded by publicly floating a move to Texas.
The 2018 pay deal was the highest in US corporate history, and made Musk the richest man in the world, with an estimated fortune of up to $220 billion as of last year. Under its terms, Musk was given stock options that would pay out if Tesla hit certain performance targets.
However, Tesla investor Richard Tornetta, who owned just nine shares in the electric automaker at the time, sued Musk and the company, arguing that the billionaire had misled shareholders by telling them that these targets would be more difficult to reach than they were.
The case was finally brought to trial in November, and Chancery Court Chancellor Kathaleen McCormick ruled in Tornetta’s favour on Tuesday. In her 200-page judgment, McCormick argued that Musk had “enormous influence over Tesla” and was therefore able to convince shareholders that such a pay deal was necessary. Even though Musk had excused himself from board meetings on the pay deal, McCormick claimed that five of the six directors who voted on it were “beholden to Musk or had compromising conflicts.”
“Swept up by the rhetoric of ‘all upside’, or perhaps starry eyed by Musk’s superstar appeal, the board never asked the $55.8 billion question: Was the plan even necessary for Tesla to retain Musk and achieve its goals?” McCormick wrote.
The judge instructed Musk and Tornetta to confer and decide how Musk would go about handing back any of the pay package he has already received.
Not all US states allow corporate courts to override shareholder decisions. “Never incorporate your company in the state of Delaware,” Musk posted on X, which he owns, after the decision was announced. “I recommend incorporating in Nevada or Texas if you prefer shareholders to decide matters,” he added.’
Capitalism at its finest.
‘The world’s richest people may be sad to hear that 2023 is coming to a close, given how lucrative the year was for them.
In total, the 500 wealthiest people saw their net worth jump an eye-popping $1.5 trillion, Bloomberg reported. That’s a massive turnaround from 2022, when that same group lost almost $2 trillion. The growth was largely due to the stellar performance of tech stocks, which helped billionaires in that field gain a whopping $658 billion, or a 48 percent surge in their wealth.
Unsurprisingly, Elon Musk led the pack, with an additional $95.4 billion boosting his net worth to $232 billion and easily making him the wealthiest person in the world. In comparison, the Tesla and SpaceX founder saw a $138 billion dip in 2022. After his impressive 2023, though, the mercurial Musk regained his position on top from LVMH CEO Bernard Arnault, who is now virtually tied with Jeff Bezos for the title of the second-wealthiest person on the planet. (Arnault has a $179 billion fortune, while Bezos clocks in at $178 billion, after gaining $71.3 billion this year.)
Other notable names from 2023 include Mark Zuckerberg, who added $84 billion to his bank account throughout the year. The Meta founder is now worth $130 billion in total. And while she may not be a household name, the L’Oréal heir Françoise Bettencourt Meyers is now the wealthiest woman on the planet and the first woman to amass a $100 billion fortune.’
https://finance.yahoo.com/news/world-500-wealthiest-people-got-180000426.html
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