Today, we'll be looking at who the current world's youngest billionaires are and how they made so much money. So quickly, this shortlist of young billionaires includes savvy technology startups, Ivy League graduates, and young heirs to massive inheritances.
According to Forbes ranking, there were 63 billionaires under the age of 40 this past year, with a vast accumulative wealth of $265 billion. We'll be highlighting the 10 youngest of these 63 billionaires, with the youngest aged 22 and the oldest of which is 31 years of age.
But before we dive into the 10-digit club, let's take a look at an honourable mention, Kylie Jenner. You might have heard of her. She's on track to be a member of this esteemed club once again, after dropping off in early 2021. As of October 2021, Kylie is worth about $700 million, and once she hits that magic number once again, as I'm sure she will. She'll hold the title of the youngest self-made billionaire.
But until Kylie Jenner reaches that $1 billion mark, here are the youngest billionaires on the planet in 2022. The list will be in order by age rather than net worth.
Alexandra and Katharina Andreson
★ Net worth — $1.4 billion (each)
These two are the youngest and second youngest billionaires, respectively. Alexandra is just 25 (23 July 1996) years of age, and her sister, Katharina, is just a year older. The siblings are Norwegian heiresses to – Johan H. Andreson Jr, their father. Johan owns Ferd – an investment and hedge fund company that invests privately and in the Norwegian stock exchange.
In 2007, the daughters transferred inheritance from their father, in the form of roughly 42% of ownership stakes in Ferd for each of them. The 42% ownership is worth 1.4 billion dollars today. Alexandra was just 11 years old when the inheritance was transferred. What would you have done if you came in possession of $1.4 billion at the age of 11? Alexandra pursues are passion for horseback riding and has won several competitions in Norway.
Gustav Magnar Witzoe
★ Net worth — $4.5 billion
Coming in third on our list is yet another Norwegian. He's a young man who owns nearly half of Salmar ASA. What is Salmar ASA, you might ask? Well, it's one of the world's largest producers of farmed salmon of all things. Gustav came into possession of his half of the company in 2013 when his father gifted it to him. His father, who also goes by the name Gustav founded the fish company in 1991, and its success led to the industrialization of fish farming in Norway.
Although Gustav is now half-owner of the company, his father still runs the business. Gustav is also trying to make a name for himself by investing in real estate and tech startups. And thanks to that amazing gift from his father, Gustav is worth $4.5 billion, ready to invest. Gustav Magnar Witzoe is just 28 years. We wish him the best of luck in his desired investments.
Evan Spiegel
★ Net worth — $13.8 billion
If the name doesn't ring a bell, his company certainly will. Spiegel is co-founder and CEO of Snap Incorporated, otherwise known as Snapchat. Snapchat is the 11th most used social media platform, which is a surefire way to make billions. But trust it wasn't easy for Evan and his co-founder Bobby Murphy.
It took years for the company to even turn a profit, and the company has seen its fair share of disappointing seasons on the stock market. But at just 31 years old, Spiegel has done well enough for himself to earn him a spot on this list. Spiegel and his co-founder Bobby are both worth over $29.3 billion.
Bobby Murphy is the co-founder of Snap Inc., and he is 33 years old, earning him the 8th spot on this list. Both Evan and Bobby attended Stanford University, where they met. Evan studied product design, while Bobby studied mathematics.
Needless to say, they were studying the right subjects, and they certainly made the right friends. It makes you rethink friendships with people you haven't found a billion-dollar company with.
Ludwig Theodore Braun
★ Net worth — $1.3 billion
The 5th youngest billionaire in the world. This 31-year-old is another blessed child to receive an inheritance worth over a billion. In this case, Braun inherited 10% of the medical device company B. Braun Melsungen.
The company started in 1939 as a small pharmacy that sold herbal remedies and is now a major medical instruments firm that is worth over $10 billion. Ludwig's father took the company's reins in 1977 and later gave 10% of it to his youngest son. The German-born medical device company has over 58,000 employees globally.
B. Braun manufactures products that save lives, ranging from the infusion and inject solutions to surgical instruments. Chances are, if you've gone to the doctor or the hospital, you've been assisted by something this medical manufacturer has produced.
The medical device field remains one of the most lucrative due to the cost of products and the utmost necessity for those products. Ludwig, however, did not inherit as much as his older sister did, Eva Maria Braun-Luedicke. She's the 10th youngest billionaire on the planet and just about $200 million more than her brother.
Evan was granted 12% of the company, which put her slightly above Ludwig's $1.3 billion. Perhaps I'm playing up the sibling rivalry a bit much. I'm sure there's not much animosity between the two billionaire siblings.
John and Patrick Collison
★ Net worth — $9.5 billion (each)
Yet another pair of siblings, John and Patrick Collison, are 31 and 33 years old, respectively. John is the president and co-founder of Stripe, while Patrick operates as CEO and co-founder. Stripe is a revolutionary company that builds software for businesses to plug into websites and apps to instantly connect with credit card and banking systems to receive payments.
The technology startup has earned each of the brothers about a billion dollars. The two young men came up with the idea for Stripe while attending University in Boston, Ireland. Both brothers attended Castle Roy College in Ireland, then they completed their education in the United States. John attended Harvard University, while Patrick took his wits to MIT. Stripe created seal-proof methods for money exchanges between individuals and businesses online.
The company is similar to PayPal, as they share several core features. Stripe's design was so good that the creators of PayPal – Elon Musk and Peter Thiel, saw fit to invest in the company. So, essentially John and Patrick Collison created a technology remarkably similar to a solidified technology titan. It got the attention of the two men who built that titan, and they were inclined to invest. Sounds like a winning formula to me.
Bobby Murphy
★ Net worth — $15.7 billion
★ Age — 33 years
Yep! That Snapchat guy we discussed earlier in no. 4 with Evan Spiegel for co-founding Snapchat.
Interestingly enough, of the 10 youngest billionaires, only two lacked a connection to another member on the list. In review, the 1 & 2 spots were sister heiresses; No. 4 & 8 were co-founders; No. 5 & 10 were brother and sister, and No. 6 & 7 were brother co-founders. This leaves our good friend Gustav – the salmon guy and our next friend on this list.
Wang Han
★ Net worth — $1.4 billion
Coming in at a solid number 9 and a spry 34 years old is Wang Han. Han is a Chinese billionaire that inherited his massive wealth from his father when he passed away. His father, Wong Juneyao, founded the renowned Juneyao Chinese group, an airline. Juneyao air is one of the biggest airlines in China. The Juneyao group also has mass investments in retail, food, and education in China.
Eva Marie Braun-Luedicke
★ Net worth — $1.5 billion
★ Age — 34 years
The last but certainly not the list is the billionaire heiress and brother to Ludwig Theodore Braun.
Well, there you have it, the 10 youngest billionaires in the world. These young adults have a cumulative net worth of over $20 billion, with just 275 years lived. In 2020, there were more billionaires than ever before. I, for one, will be interested to see what this young person will do with their and I'll be curious to find out if any of these hotshots can make their way up the Forbes list.
By next year, I'm sure there'll be a whole new list of fresh billionaires, and yes! I'm sure Kylie Jenner will be one of them again. Whether it's an inheritance or the result of hard work and innovation, the world economy has never been better suited for young billionaires.
See you next time. Cheers!
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Wealth