Tesla (TSLA.O) finance chief Zachary Kirkhorn has stepped down after four years in the position, the world’s most valuable automaker announced, and accounting head Vaibhav Taneja has been selected in his place, sending shares down more than 3% on Monday.
Kirkhorn, who had been with Tesla for 13 years, was let go without explanation by Elon Musk’s company. He will stay with the company until the end of the year to ensure a smooth transition.
During his tenure, Tesla earned its first quarterly profit after releasing the mass-market Model 3 compact automobile, and the company was valued at more than $1 trillion.
Musk announced Kirkhorn’s hiring in 2019 and the departure of his predecessor, Deepak Ahuja, at the end of a conference call with investors to discuss the company’s quarterly results.
“Being a part of this company is a special experience and I’m extremely proud of the work we’ve done together since I joined over 13 years ago,” Kirkhorn said in a LinkedIn post.
When reached via LinkedIn, Kirkhorn did not answer quickly.
“That he’s going to be around until the end of the year is evidence that this is just for personal reasons and the personal reason is likely that working with Elon Musk is really hard and he’s done it for 13 years,” said Gene Munster, managing partner at Deepwater Asset Management.
Taneja, 45, joined Tesla in 2016 after the carmaker acquired SolarCity. He will serve as “Master of Coin” in addition to his post as chief accounting officer, according to the manufacturer.
