“So, I’m a billion two in debt,” Kiyosaki said during an appearance on the “Get Rich Education” podcast over the summer. His remarks were quoted by the New York Post.
Kiyosaki also cautioned listeners against blindly following his approach.
“You should not do what I do, right?” he said, before explaining that he had been studying the use of debt since 1974.
“But I studied it since 1974… If you’re going to learn to use debt, you’d better take some education,” he said.
However, Kiyosaki’s ex-wife and former business partner, Kim Kiyosaki, said the $1.2 billion figure has been widely misunderstood.
Speaking to Vanity Fair, Kim clarified that Robert Kiyosaki does not personally owe $1.2 billion. Instead, the figure represents the total debt held by a group of real-estate investors involved in their property investments.
“We have a lot of apartment houses with our partners,” she said.
“So technically, yes, we have all this debt,” Kim added, stressing that the debt is tied to real assets.
Vanity Fair reported that Kiyosaki’s personal share of the debt is likely to be significantly smaller. The magazine estimated that if his annual income is around $3 million, his share of the debt could potentially be in the range of $30 million to $60 million.
Kim also suggested that Kiyosaki is known for making provocative statements to attract attention.
“He loves to say things that shock,” she said.