Musk's Net Worth Reportedly Drops $20B After SNL Appearance, Bitcoin and Dogecoin Slide

Grimes, who appeared on the same episode, was hospitalized after the show following a panic attack.
A joke about Dogecoin, a pause on Bitcoin, and a falling share price in one week
The report ties Musk's reported $20 billion weekly loss to three events within days of his SNL appearance.
Mark

Why does a joke on a comedy show move a coin's price by a third?

Mimi

Dogecoin has been closely tied to Musk's public enthusiasm. When he called it a "hustle" on SNL, the report says it dropped about 35%.

Luke

Careful, though. The report links the drop to the joke, but it doesn't show causation. Other things could have moved the price that week.

Mark

What about the Bitcoin announcement?

Mimi

Tesla said it was suspending vehicle purchases with Bitcoin, citing fossil fuel use in mining, especially coal. Bitcoin dropped sharply afterward.

Luke

Notice the source gives no figure for Bitcoin's drop. "Sharply" is all we have.

Mark

And the $20 billion?

Mimi

Forbes reportedly put Musk's losses for the week at that figure, with Tesla shares down 15%.

Luke

That's one outlet's estimate, relayed by another. These are paper losses, and the method isn't explained here.

Mark

Is Tesla done with Bitcoin?

Mimi

Not by its own statement. Tesla says it won't sell its Bitcoin and will use it again once mining becomes more sustainable.

Luke

No timeline was given, so that's an intention, not a commitment. And Grimes' hospitalization is reported with almost no detail, so we shouldn't read more into it.

  • A throwaway joke on live television sent Dogecoin tumbling by about 35% almost immediately.
  • Tesla's abrupt halt to Bitcoin vehicle purchases over fossil-fuel mining rattled crypto holders and the company's own investors.
  • Tesla shares slid 15% within a week, and Musk's reported fortune took a roughly $20 billion hit with it.
  • Musk is steering toward a middle path: Tesla will hold its Bitcoin, keep the door open to using it again, and explore lower-energy coins.
  • Grimes's hospitalization after a panic attack on the same night casts a human shadow over the chaos.
  • Where it lands depends on whether cleaner mining arrives and whether Musk's words keep swinging crypto prices.

Sometimes a single week gathers several threads that had been running separately, and this one tied them together around a public man and the money that follows his words. Elon Musk, hosting Saturday Night Live, made a joke calling Dogecoin a "hustle," and the coin that had grown around his name lost roughly a third of its value. Days later, his company Tesla paused vehicle purchases made in Bitcoin, citing the fossil fuels burned to mine it, and its shares fell about 15% over the week, pulling a reported $20 billion from his fortune. The episode reminds us how quickly markets built on attention can turn when the person at their center speaks, and it leaves open whether the promise of cleaner energy will bring Bitcoin back into the everyday exchange of the company's customers.

Elon Musk's week ended with a reported $20 billion loss in his net worth, and the trouble began with a live television appearance. According to HotNewHipHop, citing Forbes, Musk hosted Saturday Night Live and joked that Dogecoin is a "hustle." Dogecoin lost about 35% of its value afterward. The coin had become closely tied to Musk, so a remark made on a national stage carried real weight in a market that often moves on his words.

The second blow came from Tesla. Musk announced that the company had suspended vehicle purchases made with Bitcoin, citing the fast-growing use of fossil fuels for mining and transactions, with coal singled out as the worst. Bitcoin's value dropped sharply after the news. Musk was careful to say he still sees cryptocurrency as a good idea with a promising future, but not at great cost to the environment. Tesla, he said, will hold its Bitcoin and use it for transactions again once mining shifts to sustainable energy, and it is studying other coins that use less than 1% of Bitcoin's energy per transaction.

Tesla's shares fell 15% over the week, and because so much of Musk's wealth is tied to the company, that decline fed straight into his fortune. Forbes, as reported, put the total losses at $20 billion.

There was a personal cost too. Grimes, who is dating Musk and also appeared on the episode, was hospitalized after the show following a panic attack. The report offers no further detail on her condition.

The figures are secondhand, and the $20 billion total is attributed to Forbes without an explanation of how it was calculated. What is clear is the sequence: a joke, a pause on Bitcoin payments, and a falling share price, all within one week. Whether Tesla accepts Bitcoin again, and whether Musk's public remarks keep moving crypto prices this way, remain open.

Elon Musk's week ended with a reported $20 billion hole in his net worth, and the report ties it to a few days that began with a live television appearance. According to HotNewHipHop, citing Forbes, the losses came after Musk hosted Saturday Night Live, where he joked that Dogecoin is a "hustle."

The joke, by the account of the report, did real damage. Dogecoin lost about 35% of its value afterward. The coin had become closely associated with Musk, so a remark like that, made on a national stage, carried weight in a market that tends to move on his words.

The second blow came from Tesla itself. Musk announced that the company had suspended vehicle purchases made with Bitcoin. His stated reason was environmental. He said Tesla was concerned about the rapidly growing use of fossil fuels for Bitcoin mining and transactions, singling out coal as the fuel with the worst emissions. Bitcoin's value dropped sharply after the announcement.

Musk did not frame it as a rejection of cryptocurrency. He said it is a good idea on many levels and that he believes it has a promising future, but that it cannot come at great cost to the environment. Tesla, he said, will not sell any of the Bitcoin it holds, and it intends to use Bitcoin for transactions again once mining shifts to more sustainable energy. He added that the company is also looking at other cryptocurrencies that use less than 1% of Bitcoin's energy per transaction.

The third piece was Tesla's own stock. Shares in the company fell 15% over the past week. Because so much of Musk's wealth sits in Tesla, a decline of that size feeds directly into his personal fortune. Forbes, as reported here, put the week's total losses at $20 billion.

There was a personal cost as well. Grimes, who is dating Musk and also appeared in the SNL episode, was hospitalized after the show. She had suffered a panic attack. The report gives no further detail on her condition.

The figures here are reported secondhand, and the piece attributes the $20 billion total to Forbes without laying out how it was calculated. What it does establish is the sequence: a joke about Dogecoin, a pause on Bitcoin payments at Tesla, and a falling share price, all within one week. The open questions are whether Tesla resumes accepting Bitcoin once mining moves to cleaner energy, and whether Musk's public remarks continue to move crypto prices the way they appear to have this week.

Tesla has suspended vehicle purchases using Bitcoin; cryptocurrency is a good idea on many levels, but this cannot come at great cost to the environment.
— Elon Musk
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