Indians are breaking boundaries as they take the helm of top businesses across the world. Vaibhav Taneja, the newly elected CFO of Tesla is one such example. Elon Musk’s Tesla is one of the leading multinational automotive and clean energy companies in the world. The world’s richest man had his net worth increase by $96.6 billion between January and June 2023, as per India Today. Musk’s winning streak continued in July, with Tesla shares rising 6.9 % in July 2023 thereby adding $13 billion to his overall net worth making it $228.4 billion, as per Forbes.
Vaibhav Taneja went to Delhi University to pursue his graduation in commerce. In 2006, he became a CA. Taneja worked for PricewaterhouseCoopers, one of the four major accounting companies in India and the United States, for 12 years as a Senior Manager in San Jose, California. He took forward his corporate journey in 2016 when he joined Solar City, which Tesla purchased for $2.5 billion. He held significant positions as the Vice President, Accounting Operations and Vice President, Corporate Controller for one year.
In 2017, Vaibhav joined Tesla, Inc, and in the month of May, following year he was promoted to corporate controller. Taneja worked his way up to become the Chief accounting officer in March 2019. Prior to becoming CFO, he was named as a director for Tesla’s Indian subsidiary, Tesla Indian Motors and Energy Private Limited, in January 2021.
With more than 17 years of experience in technology, retail & telecommunication, according to his LinkedIn, Taneja has held significant positions throughout his career to date and is well versed in problem-solving capabilities, focusing on solutions from the business perspective given the in-depth industry knowledge. He has significant experience in helping companies set up their business processes and streamline existing processes.
After Zach Kirkhorn stepped down from the position of CFO it raised a few eyebrows and startled the industry observers who had viewed him as a potential successor to the company’s CEO, Elon Musk. After trade hours, Tesla’s stock fell 1% as a result of the statement thereby arising questions on the decision made by the automotive company.
Kirkhorn’s resignation from Tesla has left the company’s succession in a questioning stance. In a LinkedIn post, Kirkhorn expressed his pride in the accomplishments made during his 13-year tenure at Tesla. He stated, “Being a part of this company is a special experience and I’m extremely proud of the work we’ve done together since I joined over 13 years ago.”
Musk, the CEO took it to X (formerly Twitter) to announce the news, “I would like to thank Zach Kirkhorn for his many contributions to Tesla over the course of 13 often difficult years. Much appreciated and best wishes for the next stage of his career.”
Vaibhav took over as the CFO or as popularly called, “Master of Coins” for Tesla, Inc. According to IndiaTV, Taneja’s net worth is estimated to be about $52.1 million with about 104,504 units of Tesla, Inc common stock.