Markiplier could've just turned a quiet GoPro investment into a massive $15 million payday
Markiplier, real name Mark Edward Fischbach, might be known more for his YouTube videos than his stock market dealings, yet a quiet but clever investment into GoPro has left him with a jaw-dropping $15 million payday off the back of a recent merger.
It's no secret that the best way to extend your money is through investments, and it's why one billionaire believe that so many Americans fall into a major trap every year that's restricting them from potential earnings.
Even the safest stocks have reliably grown over the years and decades – with some understandable bumps expected along the way – yet the best investments are those made before a company makes it big, bearing fruit down the line when success is achieved.
That's exactly what happened with famous YouTuber Markiplier and GoPro, as what turned initially started as a hopeful bid to support a camera company he loved turned into a major return on investment years down the line.
Markiplier's investment in GoPro explained
As reported by Bloomberg, one of the key motivating factors behind Markiplier's decision to buy up GoPro stock is that he believed the company was 'undervalued', using the purchase as something he was 'cooking in the background' while working on other projects.
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This slow burn approach has certainly paid off, however, as the recent announcement of a merger between GoPro and Starman Optical, a private photonics company, has given all shareholders in the former $1.14 per share in cash, while also allowing them to retain roughly 10% of the new combined company.
Having purchased his shares as the comparatively low price of around $0.60, Markiplier has certainly made a lot of money off the back of this investment — especially as he was the largest individual shareholder that wasn't backed by a separate investment firm or GoPro directly.
Why the merger might not be perfect
Despite earning a significant financial windfall off the back of this merger, Markiplier doesn't appear to be too happy as he has expressed significant opposition to the merger in a recent video.
"I did not know that, and if I did, do you think I would be ok with the company that's buying [GoPro]," Markiplier proclaimed in response to Starman Optical's acquisition.
"I don't even remember the real name of it but it has something to do with defense, and AI data centers [...] I invested because I like this camera, I invested because I believe that the camera is going to be good for people," he continued.
"I get it, it looks bad, I did not know about it at all. There was no knowledge from me, and if I had any knowledge of it, I wouldn't even be remotely close to this."
What started out as a simple and promising investment has turned into something of a nightmare for the YouTuber then, and he might be happy to cash out at this point and put his belief in GoPro behind him going forward.