Here's your Forbes Daily Briefing for Sunday, May 18th.

Today on Forbes, why Selena Gomez isn't a billionaire.

Last weekend, Forbes published a report about financial issues at Wondermind,

a mental health startup co-founded by actress and business mogul Selena Gomez,

which failed to pay its employees,

freelancers, and vendors in recent weeks. Then last Monday, a source with knowledge of the

situation confirmed that nine employees were laid off and given two-week severance,

leaving just four remaining. Forbes's reporting revealed that the startup, which Gomez founded in

2021 with her mom, Mandy Teefei, and newsletter entrepreneur Daniela Pearson, who left in

23, owed tens of thousands of dollars, if not more, in outstanding debts, which the company

says it has since repaid.

In a recorded conversation shared with Forbes, Teefi, who was also Wondermind's CEO,

told employees that she'd taken out a loan against her home to keep the struggling startup afloat.

Not surprisingly, the news of trouble at Wondermind set off a heated debate online.

How much can Gomez really be worth if a startup she co-founded can't pay its workers or

its bills?

In September 2024, Bloomberg reported Gomez's net worth to be $1.3 billion, thanks

to her makeup line, Rare Beauty, which was founded in 2019 and launched in 2020.

Multiple media outlets have since called the 32-year-old Gomez a billionaire as well.

However, based on Forbes's reporting, while Gomez is very wealthy, we estimate her to be worth

roughly $700 million.

This figure still ranks the former Disney star among the wealthiest self-made women entrepreneurs in the country, and one of the richest

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