Elon Musk is $8 billion poorer after taking control of Twitter, meaning his net worth has fallen by $66 billion this year

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Taking control of Twitter left Elon Musk $8 billion worse off overnight, according to calculations by the Bloomberg wealth index.

The new owner of the social media platform said he bought it to “try to help humanity,” and not to make more money.

Before sealing the $44 billion deal on Thursday, Musk was estimated to be worth about $212 billion, per Bloomberg. That figure declined to $204 billion on Friday, however. 

He remains the world’s richest man, but Musk’s net worth has fallen by $66 billion this year, according to Bloomberg. That’s mainly because Tesla shares have skidded by 43% this year, as some investors anticipated he would sell more stock in the electric-vehicle maker to help fund the Twitter deal. The Tesla chief has a stake of about 15.6%.

Musk’s net worth peaked in November last year at $338 billion when Tesla shares soared. 

Other investors in the Twitter deal have also suffered, Bloomberg found. Twitter co-founder Jack Dorsey’s wealth fell by an estimated $380 million, while another Musk backer, Saudi investor Prince Alwaleed Bin Talal al Saud, took a hit of about $640 million hit. 

While Musk’s fortune has dipped, top Twitter executives who were let go as part of the billionaire’s first moves will share about $100 million in severance payments, with former CEO Parag Agrawal getting the largest payout of $38.7 million.

The Tesla CEO spent months trying to walk away from the deal, resulting in expensive litigation between him and Twitter, only to decide in early October he would buy it after all.

As well as becoming “Chief Twit”, Musk is also CEO of Tesla, where his official title is “Technoking,” and also runs SpaceX, and holds senior roles at Neuralink and The Boring Company.