Mark Zuckerberg’s pivot into the metaverse has cost him dearly in the real world. The ultra-rich businessman lost more than any other billionaire this year and fell down to his lowest wealth ranking in years amid challenging times for the tech industry. His net worth slashed by $71B — more than half — this year alone.
Mark Zuckerberg Has Lost More Than Half His Fortune In 2022
By
Zainab Pervez in
Business
On 21st September 2022
advertisement
In a rough year for just about every US tech titan, the wealth erased from the CEO of Meta Platforms stands out. His fortune has been cut more than half, dropping by $US71 billion ($106 billion) so far this year, the most among the ultra-rich tracked by the Bloomberg Billionaires Index.
At $US55.9 billion, his net worth ranks 20th among global billionaires, his lowest spot since 2014. He stands behind three Waltons and two members of the Koch family.
It was less than two years ago when Zuckerberg, 38, was worth $US106 billion and among the top group of global billionaires, with only Jeff Bezos and Bill Gates commanding bigger fortunes. His wealth swelled to a peak of $US142 billion in September 2021, when the company’s shares reached as high as $US382.
The following month, Zuckerberg introduced Meta and changed the company’s name from Facebook. And it’s been largely downhill from there as it struggles to find its footing in the tech universe.
advertisement
Its recent earnings reports have been dismal. It started in February, when the company revealed no growth in monthly Facebook users, triggering a historic collapse in its stock price and slashing Zuckerberg’s fortune by $US31 billion, among the biggest one-day declines in wealth ever.
Other issues include Instagram’s bet on Reels — its answer to TikTok’s short-form video platform — even though it’s worth less in advertising revenue. The industry overall has been affected by lower marketing spending due to concerns over an economic slowdown.
The stock is also being dragged down by the company’s investments in the metaverse, said Laura Martin, senior internet analyst at Needham & Co. Zuckerberg has said he expects the project will lose “significant” amounts of money in the next three to five years.
In the meantime, Meta “has to get these users back from TikTok,” said Martin. It’s also hampered by “excessive regulatory scrutiny and intervention,” she said. Almost all of Zuckerberg’s wealth is tied up in Meta stock. He holds more than 350 million shares, according to the company’s latest proxy statement.
advertisement
Mark Zuckerberg came under scrutiny following the Cambridge Analytica scandal that came about after the 2016 US presidential elections.
In 2018, he also gave evidence to US Congress over allegations that Facebook harvested users' personal data.
In a written statement on Facebook to Congress, he apologized for fake news, election interference, and hate speech on the social media site.
He said: "It's clear now that we didn't do enough to prevent these tools from being used for harm as well,"
advertisement
"That goes for fake news, foreign interference in elections, and hate speech, as well as developers and data privacy.
"We didn't take a broad enough view of our responsibility, and that was a big mistake.
"It was my mistake, and I'm sorry. I started Facebook, I run it, and I'm responsible for what happens here."
advertisement
Zuckerburg has had his sights set on transforming his social media network into a metaverse - where people can game, work, and communicate - for some time. But it seems Zuckerburg’s bank account is hating the Metaverse right now.