The Strategist

Oracle’s founder reveals amount of investment in Tesla



01/09/2019 - 11:02



Larry Ellison, one of the founders of Oracle Corp., unveiled data on investments in Tesla Inc. He stated that he owns 3 million shares of the American manufacturer of electric vehicles, estimated at $ 1 billion.



Oracle_Photos_Screenshots via flickr
Oracle_Photos_Screenshots via flickr
Thus, Ellison owns a 1.75% stake in Tesla, and he ranks second among the largest individual investors of the company after its founder Elon Musk (owns about 20% of Tesla).

Ellison owns Tesla’s shares not directly, but through the Lawrence J. Ellison Revocable Trust, said a statement sent to the US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

During a meeting with analysts in October, Ellison reported that the stake in Tesla is the second of his largest investments, and also called himself a "close friend" of Musk.

At the end of December 2018, Ellison joined Tesla's Board of Directors as part of an agreement with the SEC, which required the company to introduce two independent representatives to the Board of Directors. Kathleen Wilson-Thompson, HR-director of Walgreens Boots Alliance Inc. has become a new member of the Board of Directors of Tesla in addition to Ellison.

As reported, last year, Musk agreed to pay a $ 20 million fine and leave the post of chairman of the company’s board of directors in order to settle claims of the SEC, which accused him of misleading investors.

The reason for the accusations was a series of tweets by Musk in August of this year. It turned out that the messages contained false information about imminent redemption of the company's shares. Musk wrote on Twitter on August 7 that he was going to buy Tesla at a price of $ 420 per share, that is, with a 20% premium, using borrowed funds. At the same time, he added that "funding is secured."

17 days after the announcement, Musk abandoned plans to make the company private.

According to the SEC, in fact, the founder of Tesla did not discuss the deal with potential investors and did not have confirmation of funding. At the same time, all Musk’s statements were accompanied by sharp fluctuations in the price of Tesla shares.

source: bloomberg.com