Elon Musk donated $5.74bn in Tesla shares to charity last year

The donation was worth $5.74bn, based on the closing prices of Tesla shares on the five days that he donated the stock. The filing did not disclose the name of the charity.

It came as the billionaire sold $16.4bn worth of shares after polling Twitter users about offloading 10% of his stake in the electric-car maker in early November.

He said on Twitter that he would pay more than $11bn in taxes in 2021 due to his exercise of stock options set to expire this year.

He also traded barbs with Senators Bernie Sanders and Elizabeth Warren who called on wealthy people to pay more taxes.

Analysts have said there would be a tax benefit for Musk potentially gifting Tesla stock, since shares donated to charity are not subject to capital gains tax, as they would be if sold.

Tesla was not immediately available for comment.

Last year, Musk and the foundation offered $100m prizes to those who could come up with a technology to help remove carbon from the atmosphere.

Last year, he said he was donating $20m to schools in Cameron county, Texas, the location of a Space X rocket launch site, and $10m to the city of Brownsville.

Musk has also flirted with more ambitious philanthropy goals.

He was responding to a plea for a donation from David Beasley, the executive director of the World Food Programme.