Had he held his shares until today, they would be worth about $14.76 billion (Meta’s stock price is $736 at the time of writing), a decision that may haunt even one of Silicon Valley’s savviest investors.
What led him to invest in the first place? He believed the college market—which was Facebook’s original audience—had been underestimated.
Fortune reached out to Thiel for comment.
Despite selling a majority of his stake in the company, the 57-year-old remained heavily involved for many years, serving on the board until 2022.
And he’s not the only investor to have thrived off the success of Facebook; the social network’s growth has created countless millionaires—and multiple billionaires.
But the company’s lesser-known cofounders have also joined the billionaire club, including Dustin Moskovitz ($11.4 billion) and Eduardo Saverin ($40 billion), as well as former COO Sheryl Sandberg ($2.5 billion) and former president Sean Parker ($3 billion).
He cashed out his 10% stake in the computer company for $800 just 12 days after signing the contract. Wayne’s share could now be worth between $75 billion and $300 billion, thanks to the company’s current $3 trillion market cap (his shares would have likely been diluted thanks to new investors and public offering).
And while Wayne has said he had no regrets at the time since he figured he would one day just be the “richest man in the cemetery,” he’s since admitted it would’ve been nice not to worry about money. To make ends meet, he’s relied on renting out part of his property, as well as cashing his monthly Social Security check.
