Meet man who sold Apple shares in…, today those shares worth Rs 260000000000000, his name is…

Ronald Wayne co-founded Apple with Steve Jobs and Steve Wozniak in 1976. He sold his 10% stake just 12 days.

Alas, my bad luck! When financial experts say to stick with your investments for a long time, it’s no joke because the best formula for investing is the longer you stay invested, the more profit you get. Today’s story is about a man who withdrew his 10 percent stake in the world’s leading tech company, Apple, 49 years ago, but if he had not withdrawn his stake in the company, he would have been counted among the world’s richest people today. We are talking about Ronald Wayne, who had a 10 percent stake in Apple in 1976 and would have had a net worth of Rs 26.1 lakh crore if he had stayed invested. At that time, Wayne sold his stake for approximately two lakh rupees. Let’s know his story.

Who Is Ronald Wayne?

Ronald Wayne was a friend of Apple founders Steve Jobs and Steve Wozniak. He played a key role in starting Apple. When Jobs decided to found Apple and for that he took Steve Wozniak’s support. He assigned Ronald Wayne the task of persuading Steve to proceed with the plan. Wayne succeeded and Steve agreed to support Apple.

That time Ronald Wayne was working at an electronics company – Atari. Apart from being a very dear friend of Jobs and Steve, Wayne was also a wise advisor for them.

Why Ronald Wayne Left Apple After 12 Days

Jobs knew that Ronald Wayne was a very intelligent man and therefore he trusted him with all the tasks of registering Apple as a company. Ronald Wayne was the one who drafted the company contract and prepared all the legal documents, completing all the necessary formalities.

In return for this contribution, Steve Jobs gave him a 10 percent stake in Apple. Notably, Jobs and Wozniak received 45 percent stake each. However, in just 12 days, after this agreement, Wayne left the company, selling his part of stake for drafting the company contract and preparing all the legal documents USD800. After some time Wayne was given an additional USD1,500 to free him from any legal claims.

HIGHLIGHTS

• Ronald Wayne co-founded Apple with Steve Jobs and Steve Wozniak in 1976.
• He sold his 10% stake just 12 days.
• Wayne quit due to fears over Apple’s debt.
• His stake would be worth around USD 300 billion today.

Why Did Ronald Wayne Sell His Stake In Apple?

Wayne sold his stake due to Apple’s debt. The company back then was struggling for capital. Steve Jobs had borrowed USD15,000 from an electronics store -Byte Shop – to fulfil an order for 50 computers. This store has previously failed to meet its orders to its suppliers on several occasions.

During an interview in 2017, Wayne said his fear compelled him to sell his stake. “I thought, ‘If we don’t get the money, how will we pay back that $15,000?’ Jobs and Wozniak had no money, but I had a house, a car, and a bank account. If something went wrong, I would be the one to lose,” he said.

If I Hadn’t Sold Apple Shares, I Would Have Been A Billionaire Today

If Ronald Wayne had not sold his 10 percent stake in Apple, his net worth would have been USD300 billion today. Notably, the tech giant’s current market cap is approx USD3 trillion.

This means Wayne’s stake would have been larger than Steve Jobs or Bill Gates.