Batman Knows About Investing

Batman was rich and knew how to invest. I will explain how Bruce Wayne was the richest superhero. He had more money then Ironman (Tony Stark) plus Tony had to actually make weapons and run Stark Industries. Superman worked on a farm and then as a Reporter. We all know Spiderman and Wolverine struggled with money. Spiderman could barely pay his rent and Wolverine literally lived in a cave for period of time before going to Japan.

Lets discuss Batman and why he was the richest superhero. Bruce Wayne's family owned Wayne Enterprises for many generations. Wayne Enterprises was made up of numerous companies and had been earning dividends from those companies for decades. These dividends would have been invested into other businesses and the value would have grown over time. Money, when invested in a diversified basket of assets over a long period, tends to grow. A LOT. for example, $1 million dollars invested in the stock market in 1935 would be worth $2.4 Billion today.

After Bruce's parents died, all the Wayne family assets went to him. Bruce had control of all those assets and the money they continually throw off (dividends and capital appreciation).

In the movie Batman Begins, Bruce Wayne takes an interest in Wayne Enterprises, which is being taken public by the unscrupulous CEO William Earle. Wayne Enterprises was a private company owned by Bruce’s family so nobody could buy shares or know how much they made in sales and profits. The Wayne Family had total control and decided how they wanted to spend the profits. Earle wanted to push Bruce out his own company and take away his control. In a public company, Bruce would have no control or say in Wayne Enterprises. He would end up as a minority shareholder, owning less than 50% of the company. The CEO could basically do what he wanted, which included making military weapons and cutting funding to the many charities in Gotham City Bruce supported. Bruce was not happy with these decisions in the movie and the direction the CEO was taking the company.

What Bruce did was buy enough shares (through dummy corporations and other charitable trusts) to equal a 51% majority. The CEO didn't know about this, he thought Bruce was only focused on partying. So no matter how many shares/votes go against him, Bruce will always have a majority. That is how he regained control of Wayne Enterprises and fired the CEO at the end of the movie. Because of dividends and capital appreciation, Bruce Wayne doesn't have to do any work once the investment in the company is made. He now has more than enough time to fight crime.