Based on the eponymous podcast by Rebecca Jarvis and ABC Audio, Hulu’s “The Dropout” documents the life of Elizabeth Holmes and the rise and fall of her company, Theranos. At the time of Theranos’ founding, Elizabeth was romantically involved with Ramesh “Sunny” Balwani, who later joined the company as chairman. However, with the United States Securities and Exchange Commission filing a fraud charge against the company and its officers, Balwani found himself charged with multiple counts of wire fraud and conspiracy to commit wire fraud. As the former president now awaits trial, the Hulu show has made fans quite curious about his net worth. Well, we provide answers!
How did Sunny Balwani earn his money?
Born in Pakistan, Sunny grew up in India and completed school before immigrating to the United States. He went on to earn an undergraduate degree in information systems from the University of Texas at Austin, which landed him jobs at top software companies like Microsoft and Lotus Software. Eventually, he helped develop the software development company, Commercebid, which helped other companies navigate the world of e-commerce at a time when the internet was taking the world by storm. In 1999, Commercebid was acquired by Commerce One and, according to reports, Balwani was appointed as a member of the parent company’s board of directors. Subsequently, in 2000, Balwani sold his shares in Commerce One and reports claim he made around $40 million from the sale.
With a sizable amount in his bank, Balwani enrolled in the MBA program at the University of California, Berkeley. In 2002, he met Elizabeth Holmes on a trip to Beijing, and it didn’t take long for the couple to become romantically involved. Although Elizabeth started Theranos in 2003, Balwani assumed the role of chairman in 2009 and was responsible for the day-to-day management of the company. He even mentioned that he loaned the company $13 million to get them out of a tough spot. Theranos’ Edison blood test device propelled them into popularity, and Balwani managed to raise the venture capital of the company. At the end of 2014, Theranos was valued at $9 billion, naturally increasing its chairman’s net worth.
However, things quickly turned sour, and in March 2018 the United States Securities and Exchange Commission charged Theranos, Balwani and Elizabeth with fraud. The former president claimed he was innocent, but on June 15, 2018, he was charged with nine counts of wire fraud and two counts of conspiracy to commit wire fraud, alongside Elizabeth Holmes. Although Balwani is now awaiting trial, he has always insisted on his innocence and denied all allegations. Additionally, viewers should also note that Theranos shut down all operations in 2018.
What is Sunny Balwani net worth?
Considering his position at Theranos, Balwani had an approximate total net worth of around $85 million in 2018. However, after several years of lawsuits, we can safely assume that his net worth has taken a hit since then. Also, he will most likely incur huge legal fees to fight his case.
Read more: Where is The Dropout’s Sunny Balwani now?
