Musk’s option exercise would be a rare moment of tax accountability
The thought that the Tesla founder might even pay a modest amount of his huge bill would provide a small victory for those alarmed by America’s wealth polarisation.
When Tesla, a decade ago, granted Elon Musk a package of stock options tied to the value of the nascent electric carmaker, its market capitalisation was a measly $US3.2 billion ($4.3 billion).
Tesla’s value has appreciated so much – almost 400 times to $US1.2 trillion – that his pending federal and California tax bills triggered by those options could amount to $US15 billion.
