Billionaire Mark Cuban reveals how the nation’s wealthiest can send the elevator back down and help Americans at every income level build wealth.
In a recent interview with Sarah McCammon on the “What It Takes” podcast, Cuban shared his views on AI, healthcare, and income inequality in America. The former “Shark Tank” investor, who, according to the Bloomberg Billionaire Index, has a net worth of $10.2 billion, said that one of the best ways to tackle income inequality is to give employees company stock.
“I would like to see it so that every single CEO/founder/entrepreneur does what I did, which was to give equity to every single employee,” said Cuban. “Every company I’ve ever sold, I’ve given money to every single employee. Every time.”
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How employee ownership could help narrow the wealth gap
Cuban got his start in the tech space as the founder of the computer consulting company MicroSolutions and co-founder of Broadcast.com, a pioneer in internet radio and streaming. He later sold both companies and turned to other ventures, which have included a long-running role on “Shark Tank,” ownership stakes in professional sports franchises, film and TV distribution companies, investments in technology companies, healthcare companies, consumer products, and more.
In keeping with his stance on giving back, Cuban says he paid out bonuses to every employee after each company sale. According to Cuban, the sale of Broadcast.com turned 300 of his employees into millionaires.
“So if the CEO gets $100,000 worth of stock because they make $1 million in cash, and the janitor makes $50,000, then they deserve the same percentage in stock, and that will change the game,” Cuban said.
He also touched on Elon Musk as a real-life example of what can happen when CEOs give employees a stake in the companies they work for.
“If you own stock in SpaceX, I think Elon created 4,000 millionaires when they went public, and he gives everybody shares of stock in his companies,” Cuban said. “So, if you work at Tesla, if you work at SpaceX, when those stocks go up, your net worth goes up.”
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The case for equity as an employee perk
According to Morgan Stanley’s “At Work’s 2026 annual State of Workplace Financial Benefits” study, just 37% of employees work at companies that offer equity, even though 75% of employees and 85% of human resources leaders view equity compensation as an effective motivator.
For CEOs, giving employees a direct stake in the company they work for can not only help them fund their long-term goals, but it can also incentivize them to work harder because the company’s success is directly linked to their financial future, according to Cuban.
Employees surveyed by Morgan Stanley also said another advantage of equity compensation was its potential to help boost their long-term investing goals, such as retirement.
Cuban says CEOs can also be incentivized to offer this kind of perk with tax breaks so that every employee can be put on a path to build wealth and close the gap.
“Nobody wants to see civil unrest,” Cuban said. “Nobody wants to see people who can’t live their lives, you know, and pay for food or pay for housing or pay for transportation or afford their gas. That is not what this country should be all about.”
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