Tesla major shareholder Liao Kaiyuan: No longer fully invested in Tesla, the 1929 stock market crash is about to repeat
Tesla's major shareholder Liao Kaiyuan recently posted that a stock market crash similar to that of 1929 is approaching. He wants to hedge against portfolio risks and, concerned that Tesla's stock is about to be sold off, he chose to sell some Tesla shares and invest in relatively safe short-term Treasury bills to protect his investments
One of Tesla's largest individual shareholders, Liao Kaiyuan, is no longer all in on Tesla stock.
Recently, he responded to a question from a netizen on the social media platform X, stating that he is reducing his Tesla holdings due to concerns that the stock is about to be sold off, and he plans to invest part of the proceeds into government bonds:
"I am no longer fully invested in Tesla. I am selling Tesla stock and buying 3-month U.S. Treasury bills. A market crash similar to that of 1929 is about to happen. The U.S. government debt exceeds $36 trillion, with a budget deficit of $2 trillion and a trade deficit of nearly $1 trillion. I need to hedge the risks in my portfolio."
Analysis indicates that although Liao Kaiyuan did not respond to inquiries about the specific quantity and speed of his reduction in Tesla stock, this behavior marks a significant change in his attitude towards Tesla.
Liao Kaiyuan became a major shareholder in Tesla during the overall stock market surge in 2021. He had publicly expressed trust in Musk and had ambitions to increase his stake in Tesla to a valuation of at least $100 billion. According to the Bloomberg Billionaires Index, Tesla stock constitutes a major part of Liao Kaiyuan's $13.5 billion fortune. As of May, he held 27.7 million shares of Tesla, accounting for about 0.9% of the company's shares.
The 69-year-old Liao Kaiyuan was born in Indonesia, educated in New York, and currently resides in Singapore. He initially made his fortune through SHI International, a corporate software company based in Somerset, New Jersey, which he co-managed with his ex-wife.
Since 2019, Liao Kaiyuan began purchasing Tesla stock and quickly built a substantial holding through stock options. However, since Musk's acquisition of the social media platform X (formerly Twitter), Liao Kaiyuan has increasingly criticized Musk, believing that the platform distracts him from his time and energy, affecting Tesla's affairs.
Liao Kaiyuan opposed Musk's controversial compensation plan during the shareholder vote in May of this year, which had previously been rejected by a judge in Delaware