Mike Merrill Photo: Chris Buck
In 2008, Mike Merrill divided himself into 100,000 shares valued at $1 each and became the world’s first publicly traded man.
The theory behind his move was simple: if a stock offering could work for Amazon or Google, why shouldn’t the same principles apply to a human being? Since then, he’s seen his stock price rise and fall, batted away hostile takeovers, and dealt with competing shareholder interests, all while holding down a full-time job.
But the most life-altering part of his undertaking has been allowing shareholders to vote on his decisions, ranging in magnitude from whether to invest in a Rwandan chicken farm to whether to get a vasectomy. In 2019, Merrill’s shares are valued at around US$5, and he’s mulling the future of his venture.
