Elon Musk loses $45bn as starship setback hits SpaceX shares

Elon Musk’s fortune plunged by $45.3 billion in a single trading session after SpaceX shares tumbled 4.4 per cent, dragging his net worth below $800 billion to $797.8 billion, following the aborted launch of the company’s Starship rocket.

The sharp decline has erased almost $700 billion from Musk’s wealth since SpaceX shares reached an all-time high on June 16, as investors reacted negatively to the failed test flight and growing concerns over the reliability of the company’s next-generation launch system, which is central to its long-term growth strategy.

SpaceX shares fell to about $125 shortly after trading opened on Friday, extending a five-day losing streak that has wiped more than 14.5 per cent off the stock’s value, according to a Forbes report.

The sell-off followed Musk’s announcement that the 13th Starship launch, scheduled for Thursday evening, was aborted after several of the rocket’s engines failed to ignite.

Responding to enquiries on his X platform, Musk said another launch attempt could take place within days.

“Hopefully in a few days,” he wrote, adding later that “the most probable launch timing is early next week.”

The failed launch marked SpaceX’s first major test flight since its record-setting public listing last month, making the setback particularly significant for investors who had priced in expectations of further technological milestones.

Earlier in the week, UBS analyst Gavin Parsons had described the recent weakness in SpaceX shares as a buying opportunity ahead of the launch, saying a successful mission could validate critical capabilities, including booster engine relight and upgraded Starlink deployment.

Instead, the aborted mission intensified concerns following another unsuccessful Starship test in May, when the Super Heavy booster failed to execute a controlled landing after multiple engines failed to restart.

The latest decline pushed Musk’s wealth below the $813 billion level recorded before SpaceX’s public listing in early June, reversing much of the extraordinary gains that briefly made him the world’s first trillionaire.

Despite the setback, Musk remains the world’s richest individual, ahead of Google co-founders Larry Page, with an estimated $282 billion, and Sergey Brin, with $260.1 billion.

Musk owns about 4.8 billion SpaceX shares and an additional 350 million stock options, making fluctuations in the company’s share price a direct driver of his personal wealth.

The latest sell-off extends a broader reversal in Musk’s fortune after Bloomberg Billionaires Index data showed last month that his wealth had already fallen below the $1 trillion mark following a $118 billion decline, although he remained significantly wealthier than any other individual globally.