Elon Musk and 9 Other Bosses Endured a Disastrous 2023

2023 has been a forgettable year for many top executives, with some of their companies losing billions of dollars, and some of them losing their jobs. Additionally, others have suffered significant damage to their reputations and are facing further trouble in 2024.

Elon Musk

2023: A Year of Celebrations and Setbacks in Business

Elon Musk had a more successful year than most CEOs, especially those in his industry. Tesla, his most profitable company, saw its shares more than double in value this year, recovering more than half of the losses from a difficult 2022. In addition, Tesla broke its previous annual sales record within the first three quarters of the year and successfully delivered its highly anticipated Cybertruck.

However, in 2023 Tesla faced numerous challenges. To combat the growing competition in the electric vehicle market, the company implemented price cuts for its vehicles, leading to a reduction in profit margins. Even though the Cybertruck was technically "in production," CEO Elon Musk cautioned investors that it would be over a year before Tesla would see a return on investment. "It will require extensive efforts to achieve high-volume production and generate positive cash flow at an affordable price," Musk warned investors in October, just before its unveiling.

Federal safety regulators compelled Tesla to issue a recall for nearly all of its 2 million vehicles on US roads due to concerns about the safety of its Autopilot system. This action came years after CEO Elon Musk's promise that the vehicles would be operating as fully autonomous robotaxis. Earlier in the year, Tesla also recalled almost all of its 363,000 US vehicles equipped with the "Full Self Driving" software. Musk had high hopes for the future of self-driving vehicles and robots, and believed that these innovations would propel Tesla to become the most valuable company in the world.

In response to a Washington Post investigation that revealed at least eight serious accidents, including fatalities, in which the Autopilot feature should not have been activated, Tesla defended its Autopilot feature. The article was released just before the announcement of the recall.

Musks other companies also had their share of setbacks.

SpaceX's uncrewed test flights of the enormous deep-space rocket system, Starship, at Elon Musk's space exploration company ended in fiery explosions instead of successfully bringing people to the moon as promised a decade ago. The company did not respond to requests for comment.

SpaceX stated that the two explosions of Starship would ultimately benefit the company. "Success is derived from our ability to learn, and today's test will contribute to enhancing the reliability of Starship as SpaceX endeavors to make life multiplanetary," the company tweeted after the second explosion, echoing a sentiment similar to their statement after the first.

In late 2022, X, the social media platform formerly known as Twitter, was acquired by Musk and had a notably challenging year compared to his other companies. Its revenue from advertisers, which was a major source of income, declined due to management changes under Musk's ownership.

Musk reported a 60% decrease in X sales in September and expressed intentions to sue the Anti-Defamation League after it claimed that hate speech increased on the platform following Musk's acquisition of the company.

In June, Musk stepped down as CEO and appointed Linda Yaccarino, a former NBCUniversal marketing executive, in an effort to regain the trust of advertisers. However, his own actions as the owner of Xs, which included retweeting and endorsing a post that promoted hateful rhetoric towards Jewish communities, resulted in another round of advertisers withdrawing their funding.

Although Musk later apologized for the post and admitted it was a mistake, he went on to publicly tell the advertisers who had withdrawn their funding to "Go. F**k. Yourself." Rather than working to mend the damaged relationships, he lashed out at the advertisers, even though he acknowledged that "this advertising boycott … is going to kill the company."

Musk went on to criticize advertisers seeking brand safety and then invited back controversial users who had previously been banned for violating the platform's standards, including conspiracy theorist Alex Jones and pro-Nazi accounts.

The numerous self-inflicted problems for Musk in 2023 make it a year he would likely want to forget, but he is not the only one facing challenges.

Disney CEO Bob Iger

One year ago, Bob Iger was celebrated as a triumphant leader at Disney, chosen to save the media conglomerate that he had previously overseen from 2005 until the end of 2021 from the challenges caused by the brief and contentious term of his chosen successor and predecessor, Bob Chapek.

Iger's return initially appeared to be a successful move, as activist shareholder Nelson Peltz backed off his plans to gain a seat on Disney's board. However, Disney continued to face problems, including losses at its Disney+ streaming service. Iger's proposed solution to address the losses - incorporating more advertisements, raising subscription fees, and reducing content - failed to halt the financial decline. In fact, the losses at the service increased significantly, causing shares to plummet further.

Additionally, Disney and other studios and streaming services were impacted by a strike led by both the Writers Guild of America and SAG-AFTRA, representing 160,000 actors, which effectively halted film and television production. The strike concluded nearly five months later, with the unions achieving many of their objectives.

Picketing SAG-AFTRA members make a strong statement as they walk the picket line outside Walt Disney Studios in Burbank, CA on Tuesday, Oct. 24, 2023.

In July, Iger publicly pondered the possibility that the company's extensive television business, which includes iconic names like ABC and ESPN, might not be essential to its operations, hinting at a potential sale in the near future.

Silicon Valley Bank CEO Greg Becker

Disney shares ended the year at approximately the same level as when the board made the decision to remove Chapek and reinstate Iger. In November, Peltz reinitiated his proxy battle with the company. Disney did not provide a response to inquiries about the challenges Iger encountered this year.

Just a year ago, Silicon Valley Bank and its CEO Greg Becker were relatively unknown outside of the tech start-up world. However, when Becker revealed in March that the bank was dealing with a liquidity issue and needed to raise $2.25 billion in capital and sell $21 billion in assets, it caused a stir in the American banking system still reeling from the 2008 financial crisis.

Selling primarily US Treasuries, which would result in a $1.8 billion loss due to rising interest rates, only further destabilized Beckers' plan. Disclosing the problems before securing the necessary investors to address the issue, and admitting that its assets had significantly depreciated, led to a run on the bank.

Customers in line outside Silicon Valley Bank headquarters in Santa Clara, California, on Monday, March 13, 2023, just after the bank's collapse.

David Paul Morris/Bloomberg/Getty Images

In just 10 hours, customers withdrew approximately $42 billion - at a rate of $1 million per second - leading to the collapse of the bank within 48 hours. This marked the second largest bank collapse in US history and the first digital bank run in American finance. The collapse was attributed to the bank's close ties with venture capitalists and tech companies, and it was later disclosed that regulators had previously warned the bank about its practices, which were not adjusted.

Becker attempted to argue that the collapse was unexpected. "I never imagined that SVB would be in this predicament," former CEO Greg Becker stated in his testimony to a Senate committee probing the collapse. He also expressed sincere regret for the impact on SVB's employees, clients, and shareholders.

The issues at SVB, such as the bank run, led to a series of other similar-sized banks collapsing, sparking concerns of a potential meltdown of the US financial system like the one that triggered the Great Recession. Luckily, this scenario was avoided thanks to the Treasury Department's promise to provide credit to banks, and the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation's assurance that depositors would be fully compensated beyond the usual limits of its insurance, which helped to calm the panic.

Credit Suisse CEO Ulrich Körner

After losing his job, Becker found himself with virtually worthless stock holdings in the bank, having sold $3.6 million of his shares just weeks before the collapse. With enough money left, he promptly embarked on a family trip to Hawaii, further fueling public outrage.

Shortly after Silicon Valley Bank's collapse in March, Credit Suisse, a Swiss investment bank, revealed to investors that it had discovered a "material weakness" in its financial reporting, indicating that risks had not been adequately evaluated. This disclosure came just a month after the bank reported its poorest annual performance since the global financial crisis.

Customers withdrew 67 billion Swiss francs ($75.2 billion) from their accounts in the first three months of the year, leading to the bank's purchase by larger rival UBS for 3 billion Swiss francs ($3.25 billion) on March 19. This was about 60% less than the bank's value just before the weekend deal, marking the end of the once-powerful banking giant, with Körner as its final CEO.

Binance CEO Changpeng Zhao

By the beginning of 2022, Changpeng Zhao, the crypto expert and CEO of Binance, had secured a spot among the wealthiest individuals on the globe, as reported by Bloombergs Billionaire Index, boasting a staggering net worth of nearly $100 billion.

By the end of 2023, he had admitted guilt to charges of money laundering in the United States. Binance agreed to a historic $4 billion settlement for penalties and fines. Zhao personally paid $200 million in fines and resigned as CEO of the cryptocurrency exchange he had established.

US Justice Department officials stated that it was the largest corporate resolution to date involving criminal charges against an executive.

A senior Treasury official informed reporters that the Binance platform was involved in facilitating a range of illegal activities, including terrorist financing, ransomware actions, child pornography, and various scams and frauds.

US Attorney General Merrick Garland, alongside US Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen and Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) Chairman Rostin Behnam, hold a press conference to announce measures being taken against Binance and its CEO Changpeng Zhao.

Zhao’s troubles are not yet resolved. He could potentially receive a maximum sentence of 10 years, but it will probably be much less. Federal guidelines suggest that Zhao could face a sentence of up to 18 months. The final decision on his sentence will be made by a judge.

Binance did not respond to a request for additional comment on its legal woes.

China Renaissance CEO Bao Fan

China Renaissance, a prominent investment bank and private equity firm headquartered in Beijing, revealed in February that it had been unable to reach its CEO Bao Fan. This marked the beginning of Bao's troubles. In March, the firm, well-known for its role in the country's tech industry, announced that it would halt trading of its shares and postpone the release of its annual results due to its continued inability to contact him.

State media revealed in June that Bao had been held by the country's leading anti-graft watchdog since his disappearance, with his detention being extended. China Renaissance has appointed an interim replacement, designating an acting chief executive in October.

Country Garden chairperson Yang Huiyan

Not too long ago, Country Garden held the title of the largest home builder in China, and Yang Huiyan was recognized as one of the wealthiest women in the world. However, following a tumultuous 2023, that moment feels like a distant past.

In October, Country Garden failed to make a payment on a $500 million bond, signaling a troubled state of China's crucial property market and posing a significant threat to the country's economic growth prospects.

This aerial photo taken on October 18, 2023 shows buildings of China's developer Country Garden Holdings in Suqian, in China's eastern Jiangsu province.

Stringer/AFP/Getty Images

Prior to the default in August, Bloomberg reported that Yang's wealth has decreased more than any other billionaire in the world over the past two years, dropping by 84% since June 2021, or $28.6 billion. Yang and her family have invested billions of dollars into Country Garden through new loans and share and bond purchases, but they will need an improvement in the national real estate market in order to turn things around on their own.

Adani Group founder Gautam Adani

Gautam Adani also suffered a massive blow to his fortune in early 2023.

In the fall of 2022, the Indian mogul surpassed Jeff Bezos to claim the title of the second-richest person on the planet, according to the Bloomberg Billionaire Index. At that time, his net worth was estimated to be $146.9 billion. As of Tuesday, the index indicated his net worth at a still substantial $84.3 billion, which is a decrease of $62.6 billion or 43% from the level reported in September 2022.

Early in the year, troubles arose when short-seller Hindenberg Research released a critical report accusing Adani of perpetrating "the largest con in corporate history."

The Adani Group retaliated with a 400-page response, dismissing the report as "a complete fabrication" and alleging that Hindenberg's shorting of internationally traded bonds and derivatives constituted securities fraud. They also accused the report of being an assault on India.

In response, Hindenberg stood by their report. Despite some of Adani's businesses, such as Adani Ports, reaching all-time highs recently, many are still struggling to recover from the losses they incurred this year.

Walgreens CEO Rosalind Brewer

Upon assuming the role of CEO at Walgreen Boots Alliance in March 2015, amidst the ongoing pandemic, Rosalind Brewer made history as the sole Black woman to head a Fortune 500 company at that time, and only the third in history to accomplish such a feat.

Brewer's tenure in the position was short-lived, as she resigned in September following a 32% decline in stock value for the year. This occurred after the company reported a significant decrease in earnings and revised its profit forecast, citing weakened consumer spending and decreased demand for Covid vaccines. "I am proud of what we accomplished together," she stated in her departure announcement, highlighting improvements to employee welfare and expanded healthcare services for customers.

Pedestrians walk by a Walgreens store that is set to be closed in the coming weeks on October 13, 2021 in San Francisco, California.

To reduce expenses, she dedicated much of her time to closing 450 stores in the United States and United Kingdom, as well as reducing 10% of the corporate and US office support workforce. This struggle was not unique to her drugstore chain, as rival Rite-Aid also filed for bankruptcy in October.

However, her actions also caused resistance from frontline pharmacists. Even without union representation, groups of pharmacists coordinated walkouts in the fall following Brewer's departure to demonstrate against working conditions that worsened during the pandemic. According to the pharmacists, under Brewer's leadership, the company jeopardized customer safety.

These protests resulted in temporary closures of a few pharmacies and decreased business at several others; Walgreens stated to CNN that the effect was "minimal." Nonetheless, this was an uncommon move for employees not represented by a union, indicating strained relations between the company and its employees.

BP CEO Bernard Looney

Bernard Looney started his career at BP at the young age of 21 in 1991, and after nearly three decades with the company, he was appointed CEO in July 2020. This was a challenging time to take the helm, as the global pandemic had severely impacted the demand for oil due to widespread lockdowns. Additionally, the industry was under increasing pressure to reduce its carbon emissions in order to address the urgent issue of climate change.

Looney's downfall was not caused by either of those factors. Instead, he stepped down in September after confessing that he had not been completely honest about his "past relationships with colleagues," as stated by the oil giant. In December, BP revealed that he would relinquish approximately $40 million in severance pay as the company's board found that he had committed "serious misconduct" by failing to fully disclose his relationships with employees.

Contributors to this report include CNN's Oliver Darcy, Samantha Delouya, Matt Egan, Nicole Goodkind, Laura He, Krystal Hur, Parija Kavilanz, Diksha Madhok, Allison Morrow, Evan Perez, Mark Thompson, Michelle Toh, Jordan Valinsky, and Jackie Wattles.