Musk Has Not Sold Tesla Stock for Years, Mainly Relying on About $1 Billion Personal Loan to Maintain Lifestyle, Classic "Buy, Borrow, Die" Model of American Billionaires
His stock holdings have appreciated continuously, with loan interest rates at only 2-3%, avoiding capital gains tax.
In market mechanisms, high-net-worth individuals are accelerating the adoption of the "Buy, Borrow, Die" wealth strategy, cycling funds between low-tax loans and asset appreciation, with Tesla stock receiving long-term holding support, while traditional stock selling for cash is pressured by high tax costs.
Source: Public Information
ABAB AI Insight
Musk's long-standing strategy of not selling Tesla stock continues the classic "Buy, Borrow, Die" model of American billionaires: obtaining liquidity through stock-backed loans to avoid triggering capital gains tax, with the tax basis reset at current market value for heirs upon death.
In terms of capital pathways, Musk uses Tesla stock as collateral to obtain low-interest loans, motivated by the stock's continuous appreciation far exceeding loan interest, achieving tax-free wealth growth while maintaining control over the company.
Similar cases include tech billionaires like Jeff Bezos and Mark Zuckerberg who have long used stock-backed loans, as well as value investors like Warren Buffett with long-term holding strategies; the current high-net-worth group in the U.S. is in a mature phase of optimizing taxes using low-interest loans.
Essentially, this represents capital concentration: personal wealth accumulation shifts from selling stocks and paying taxes to a cycle of mortgage loans, facilitated by U.S. tax laws favoring unrealized capital gains, allowing long-term stockholders to amplify wealth through low-cost leverage without actually selling assets.
ABAB News · Law of Cognition
Not selling stocks means no capital gains tax.
Loan interest is far lower than asset appreciation, which is the true wealth accelerator.
Exceptional billionaires sell leverage, while ordinary people sell labor.