Here's How Nikki Haley's Net Worth Ballooned to $8 Million After She Quit The Trump Administration

Nikki Haley is among the leading GOP in the upcoming 2024 presidential bid, beating Florida Governor Ron DeSantis to secure second position after her top rival, Donald Trump. Along with political success, the former South Carolina governor has also managed to build an $8 million fortune. However, it's worth noting her financial life was once a mess.

Haley first served as the U.S. ambassador to the United Nations, and during that time, her family's financial status was in shambles. In fact, her parents owed over $1 million, and their Lexington, South Carolina home was in danger, reported Forbes. She only had less than $1,000 in her bank account, which wasn't enough to solve her parent's problems. 

The devoted daughter loaned them hundreds of dollars throughout her career, alongside her husband, but receiving a $185,000 salary each year couldn't bail the family out of their financial crisis. In a surprising turn of events, she unexpectedly quit as then-president Trump's top envoy in 2018 and built a million-dollar empire. 

However, a spokesperson for Haley clarified her family's financial troubles had "no bearing whatsoever on Ambassador Haley's decision to leave her position." In fact, the 51-year-old's resignation letter also pointed out her request for support for "rotation in the office." 

But looking at her $8 million net worth now, it is clear that Haley didn't resign unplanned. She's had profitable business ventures pipelined for her on which she relied on. A section of her resignation letter to Trump read, "I expect you will appreciate my sense that returning from government to the private sector is not a step down but a step up." 

Since then, the GOP hopeful's net worth inflated, and the question now is how she ladder up from less than $1 million to an estimated $8 million. According to the financial experts, she took the road most traveled by the politicians- charging money for speeches to big companies like Barclays. 

She's also gained funds from speaking engagements at organizations such as the Centre for Israel and Jewish Affairs, which provided more money to Haley in a day than she had previously earned in a year. Although it's unclear how many speeches she gave from 2019 to 2021, she earned $2.3 million from just 11 events in 2022.

Secondly, she authored two books- A 2019 memoir, With All Due Respect, which sold over 100,000 copies. Her 2022 titled If You Want Something Done, provided more than $350,000 in advance payments. Aside from the books, Haley's financial disclosures show she's still on the board of United Homes Group, one of the largest homebuilders in the Southeast and a public company in which she owns stock, per The New York Times. 

The former governor also provides consulting services, generating more than $700,000 in fees. She also became a director of Boeing in 2019 but left the following year, citing disagreement with the company's decision to seek Covid-related federal aid. However, she collected over $300,000 in cash and stock. 

Haley also reported that she is a senior adviser at Prism Global Management. The company's LinkedIn page says it is a "US-based investment platform targeting growth-stage disruptive innovators in U.S. and Asia."