15 Of The World’s Youngest Billionaires In 2015
Think back to your 20’s and 30’s – Did you even know what you wanted to do with your life at that time? If you’re still trying to figure things out, that’s okay. That’s pretty normal. Most 20 and 30 year-olds go through several jobs, and some even have to resort to moving back home with their parents as they struggle to make ends meet and to pay off those student loans.
Most of us are probably just happy to have a job with benefits, regular hours and weekends off – if you’re lucky enough to even have that, that is.
Now imagine that same period in your life, but now imagine that you’d been given more than a billion dollars. Things look much different for you, huh? Not that we’re saying any of these people were simply given their money, but being a CEO of a company after you’ve just graduated from college seems like an impossible endeavor for most of us.
Beware, reading this list just might make you feel like an underachiever, no matter how old you are.
15. Eduardo Saverin – Facebook – 33 years old
Eduardo Saverin, like several others featured on this list, made a lot of his fortune as one of the co-founders of social media powerhouse, Facebook. But Saverin didn’t stop there. After renouncing his U.S citizenship, he moved to Singapore and co-founded Velos Partners, a private equity firm, and invested in other companies such as Hampton Creek Foods and Silvercar, a rental car service. Saverin, who was originally born in Brazil, is the 8th richest person in his native country and is currently valued at $5.1 billion, which is slightly up from the $4.8 billion he was listed to be worth at the beginning of the year. He has a Bachelor degree from Harvard University.
14. Yang Huiyan – Real Estate – 33 years old
Yang Huiyan is one of the richest women in China – and at just 33 years old, she’s also one of the youngest billionaires. And like several others on this list, she owes her wealth to her family. Her father was a real estate developer and owner of Country Garden Holdings. In 2007, he transferred the company to her. She took over as chairman and is a member of the board. Huiyan is estimated to be worth $5 billion at the moment, but Country Garden Holdings recently entered into the Australian real estate market so we expect that number to grow over the years.
13. Drew Houston – Dropbox – 32 years old
Some people are born entrepreneurs. If you don’t believe that now, maybe the story of Drew Houston will change your mind. Houston started messing with computers when others were still coloring outside of the lines and preparing for kindergarten. He started his first company in high school. But it was his sixth company, DropBox, that he made it big. Yes, he’s in his early 30s and already has at least six businesses under his belt. DropBox is estimated to be worth $10 billion, making Houston’s share out to be around $1.24 billion. Not too shabby, especially since this probably won’t be the last venture he invests in as well. We expect to see him rise through the ranks of the Richest People lists as time goes on.
12. Scott Duncan – Pipelines – 32 years old
Oil isn’t called “Black Gold” for nothing. It’s big business, and those lucky enough to break into it stand to make millions, if not billions. And Scott Duncan just so happened to be lucky enough to be born into a family that controls 51,000 miles of oil, natural gas, and petrochemical pipelines. His father, Dan Duncan who passed away in 2010, founded Enterprise Products Partners, and Scott is the youngest of the Duncan heirs. His siblings are also billionaires, but only his sister Randa Duncan Williams actually takes a role in running the business. Randa is the non-executive Chairman of the Board. Scott is estimated to be worth around $6.2 billion.
11. Ryan Graves – Uber – 31 years old
Now here’s an example of how the younger generation is changing the way we find jobs in this country. When Uber’s cofounder, Travis Kalanick, tweeted that he was looking to hire a product manager, Ryan Graves responded. That tweet ended up making Graves billions over the years. He was one of the first employees for the car service, Uber, which is taking the world by storm and changing how we commute around town. Similar to a taxi service, Uber employs people to drive their personal vehicles to pick up other people around town and take them where they need to go. Graves worked briefly as the CEO of the company, and now is head of global operations. Oh, and in case you were wondering, Graves is worth $1.4 billion. All thanks to one tweet. Makes you want to rethink how you use Twitter, huh?
10. Nathan Blecharczyk – Airbnb – 31 years old
Like many young self-made billionaires on this list, Nathan Blecharczyk made his billions via the internet. If you’re a world traveler, or even if you’re not but dream of being one, chances are good you’ve heard of Airbnb. For those unfamiliar with the company, the website lists homes or rooms in people’s personal houses that are for rent – temporarily. Basically, it’s an alternative to staying in a hotel room, and folks who use it swear that you can find some amazing deals. Not only that, but people who have a spare room can make some extra money by renting out the room or even renting out their entire house if they’re going to be away for awhile. It’s a win-win for both homeowner and renter, honestly.
And it’s obviously a business that works because Blecharczyk is worth $1.9 billion thanks to the concept.
9. Tatiana Casiraghi – Beer – 31 years old
Tatiana Casiraghi came from wealth, but marrying into Monaco’s royal family didn’t hurt her any either. Especially since her husband is reported to be second in line to be king. However, her personal wealth mainly comes from her grandfather’s business, the Colombian beer company Bavaria which was later traded in 2005. Several years later, Tatiana’s father passed away, leaving a portion of the family fortune to her and her brother Julio Mario Santo Domingo III, who’s also on this list.
Casiraghi is said to be worth $2.2 billion. And she married into royalty. All by the age of 31. We bet there are a good number of you envious of her right about now. Are we right?
8. Elizabeth Holmes – Blood Testing – 31 years old
While many parents would be furious if their daughter dropped out of Stanford, Elizabeth Holmes actually owes her fortune doing just that. With the money she saved up for college, she invested in a business she founded, Theranos, which is a blood testing lab that is far more cost effective than many of the commercial labs that are currently out there. And it appears to be a good investment, as her company is estimated to be worth $9 billion – of which Holmes owns a 50% stake in.
Holmes is not only one of the youngest billionaires in the world, she’s also the youngest female self-made billionaire.
7. Anton Kathrein, Jr. – Antennas – 30 years old
If you use a cellphone – and let’s face it, who doesn’t these days? – you have Anton Kathrein Jr’s family to thank for that. Kathrein’s grandfather started Kathrein-Werke in his German cellar after World War I. The company is one you may not have heard of, but it makes the cables, antennas and receivers which are necessary to send cell phone signals around the world. Not only that, they also manufacture antennas for other media such as TV and radio. Kathrein’s father ran the company until his death in 2012. After that, Anton, who was 28 at the time, took the lead. He’s currently estimated to be worth $1.7 billion.
6. Tom Persson – H&M – 30 years old
H&M may not ring a bell to a lot of people not interested in fashion, but for those in know, this international company is huge. In fact, it’s the second largest global clothing retailer in the world, outranking even Gap Inc., which comes in third. H&M is known for its fast-fashion clothing, meaning getting runway styles out to the public in a speedy fashion while the trends are still hot. But they also offer their products at an affordable cost, far more so than other brands. After all, what else would you expect from the Swedish? After all, they were the same people who brought the world Ikea.
Tom Persson is the youngest heir to the H&M fortune, a company started by his grandfather in 1947. At 30 years old, he’s estimated to be worth about $3 billion. His father also happens to be Sweden’s richest person.
5. Dustin Moskovitz – Facebook – 30 years old
Dustin Moskovitz has the distinction of being the third employee of social media powerhouse, Facebook. Moskovitz helped launch the company with roommate and friend, Mark Zuckerberg, from their dorm at Harvard. Both eventually dropped out of college and moved to Palo Alto to develop the business. But his days at Facebook ended in 2008 when he left to start his own business, a software firm named Asana. He also works alongside his wife on Good Ventures, which gives millions of dollars to charitable causes every year. Even with an estimated net worth of $7.9 billion, Moskovitz still bikes to work and flies commercial airlines just like the rest of us.
4. Mark Zuckerberg – Facebook – 30 years old
You knew this list wouldn’t be complete without Mark Zuckerberg, would it? He’s pretty much the posterboy for young billionaires. How many others on this list have had movies made out of their lives? Let’s face it, the world is fascinated with his success, and there’s no doubt we’re all a little envious of it. After all, Zuckerberg is a Harvard dropout who started the business and built up the behemoth we know today. And he hasn’t stopped there. He keeps growing, purchasing new businesses and investing more money, and in total, he’s worth around $33.4 billion, making him the 16th richest person in the world. Most of that made before he was even 30 years old.
3. Julio Mario Santo Domingo, III – Beer – 29 years old
Beer. Let’s face it, people love it, and it’s one product that many cultures around the world can agree on. But I doubt they love it more than Julio Mario Santo Domingo, III, heir to the Santo Domingo beer fortune. Because of his inheritance from his grandfather’s business, he’s estimated to be worth abut $2.2 billion. So what does a late 20-something billionaire do with all that cash? Well, Julio lives in a $4 million apartment in New York City and he works as a DJ. Most nights, he’s busy promoting his group and probably living the kind of life most of us can only dream about. His sister, Tatiana and two of his uncles are also billionaires thanks to the Santo Domingo fortune. Oh, to be born into such a family…
2. Bobby Murphy – Snapchat – 26 years old
Bobby Murphy is the son of two state employees, and was a senior at Stanford University when he got together with a buddy and created SnapChat. Murphy was studying mathematics and computation science when he, Evan Spiegel and Reggie Brown, all members of Kappa Sigma fraternity, got together and created an app they originally called Picaboo. That app flopped. Later on, Murphy and Spiegel would rebrand the app into what is now known as SnapChat, and because of that, he’s now worth $1.5 billion – at just 26 years old.
1. Evan Spiegel – SnapChat – 24 years old
It’s hard to imagine graduating college and going straight into a CEO role, but Evan Spiegel almost makes it look easy. Partnered with number two on our list, Spiegel and Murphy hit it big with their photo messaging app, Snapchat. Spiegel was studying product design at Stanford University when he met Murphy at the Kappa Sigma fraternity house. As mentioned before, their initial app named Picaboo was a failure, but when they later rebranded it as Snapchat, it took off. In a very big way. Spiegel turned down a $3 billion buyout from Facebook, and other offers came in valuing the company at $19 billion. But Spiegel isn’t interested in selling the company, saying that very few people ever get to own a business like this and that selling it for a short term goal wouldn’t be “very interesting.” Spiegel is valued at over $1.5 billion, making him the youngest billionaire in the world right now.
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