— Jeff Ward, Lehigh Valley News Briefs
Shift4 founder Jared Isaacman went into space and came back a multi-billionaire.
Forbes listed Isaacman’s net worth at $2 billion as of today (Sept. 17). Isaacman’s wealth fluctuates sometimes tens of millions of dollars per day, depending on the price of Shift4 (NYSE: FOUR).
Isaacman returned from space Sunday, after five days in orbit on a SpaceX mission. He went on the first commercial spacewalk during this flight.
Isaacman paid an undisclosed amount for the mission, which included him and three other civilians.
Back on Earth, Shift4 shares have been rising. They were at $83.13 at 1:43 p.m. Tuesday, giving the company a market capitalization of $7.4 billion.
Shift4 is based in Upper Saucon Township in Lehigh County. The company processes payments for hotels, restaurants and other businesses, including sports teams.
Today, Shift4 announced that it has added the Miami Heat of the National Basketball Association to its roster of clients.
The company will handle ticket purchases for games at Miami’s Kaseya Center through an agreement with Ticketmaster.
Isaacman founded what is now Shift4 in the basement of his family home in New Jersey in 1999, when he was 16. He is now 41.
(Disclosure: the editor owns shares in Shift4 as part of a buy-and-hold strategy)
Lehigh Valley News Briefs 