Larry Ellison Dropped Out of College Twice and Now Has $349.5 Billion — How He Did It
Written by
Nicholas Morine
Edited by
Jenna Klaverweiden
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The secret to financial success is frequently sold under a variety of auspices, from rock-solid investment planning to fiscal austerity and living below one’s means.
Despite stepping down from his post as Oracle Corporation’s CEO over a decade ago, in 2014, Larry Ellison remained on as the software company’s chief technology officer and executive chairman.
His wealth, too, has continued to accrue. According to Forbes’ real-time billionaire’s list, Ellison is the second-richest man on Earth, pegged at a net worth of $349.5 billion as of Oct. 2. That ranking places him just below Tesla CEO Elon Musk and a notch above Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg.
But how, exactly, did Ellison accumulate such massive wealth?
Early Beginnings: Ellison as a Software Self-Starter
Described as a “classic rags-to-riches story” by CEO Today, Ellison was raised in Chicago by his aunt and uncle, and is noted as a two-time college dropout, first exiting the University of Illinois followed by the University of Chicago.
Nonetheless, he displayed a natural aptitude for programming and the attendant problem-solving and logic that accompanies the practice, and soon he joined up with tech companies such as Ampex and Amdahl.
While working for Ampex, Ellison ended up working on a project for the CIA (codenamed “Oracle”), which would end up being fuel for his own entrepreneurial fire.
In 1977, Ellison co-founded Software Development Laboratories, which would later assume the moniker of Oracle Corporation. Oracle would go on to be the brand behind some of the world’s most popular enterprise software offerings — notably, Oracle Database — and the rest is history.
Oracle Stock and Other Investments
While it’s undeniable that the vast bulk of Ellison’s wealth (and the growth thereof) is attributable to his holdings in Oracle — he holds about a 40% stake in the company, per Forbes — he also has investments in Tesla, real estate and other ventures.
Regarding the bulk of his investments, in Oracle, the company’s earnings results for the first quarter of its fiscal 2026 showed revenue growth of 12%. Plus, its share price has skyrocketed by more than 74% for the year as of Oct. 2. As a result, Ellison’s holdings have blossomed over time.
The lesson: Being a self-starter willing to teach yourself in-demand skill sets and leverage these into business pursuits could pay off big. While you may not make billions, it’s certainly a good place to begin if you’re looking to pursue long-term wealth-building.
In Ellison’s own words, as YourStory detailed: “If you do everything that everyone else does in business, you’re going to lose. The only way to really be ahead is to ‘be different.'”
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