The 2020 List Of Richest Young Aussies Is Out & Surprise Surprise, It’s Mostly Tech Geniuses

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Published

November 26, 2020

Though in general 2020 has been an absolute butt of a year, the tech sector specifically has quite efficiently turned a crisis into one hell of an opportunity. And that is none more evident than in the 2020 AFR Young Rich List, which was released earlier this afternoon.

The Australian Financial Review‘s annual list of the wealthiest young Aussies is out for 2020, and in absolutely no surprises the Atlassian juggernaut once again reigns supreme at the top.

What’s fairly interesting though is that this year, unlike years past, only one of the Atlassian co-founders, Scott Farquhar, features on the list.

That’s because his cohort, Mike Cannon-Brookes, is now 41-years-old, and therefore has aged out of the “young” Rich List’s parameters.

Farquhar however remains at the top of this year’s list, with a fairly staggering net worth of $17.77 billion. And that’s up from the mark he was at last year of $13.22 billion.

Though there’s comparative daylight between the number one and two spots, the quote-unquote “runners up” in this year’s list still command an absolute shedload of cash.

Tied at two and three on this year’s list are Canva co-founders Melanie Perkins and Cliff Obrecht, whose personal worth sits at $3.43 billion, far eclipsing their $1.35 billion total from 2019.

Tech, in general, occupies bulk real estate in the overall top ten. Afterpay honcho Nick Molnar appears in fourth spot with $2.22 billion. That follows on from his confirmation as Australia’s youngest “self-made” (we say derisively) billionaire back in July.

Canva’s other co-found Cameron Adams appears at 5th overall, with $1.12 billion. And online gambling mogul Laurence Escalante slots in at sixth with a net worth just shy of a billion.

In other, more specific sections of the rich list, Zoë Foster Blake makes her Rich List debut, coming in at fifth in the young entertainment/public figure list. Foster Blake’s burgeoning Go-To skincare brand nets her a net worth of $36 million in 2020.

Golfer Adam Scott remains Australia’s wealthiest athlete with $223 million, while both Ash Barty and Sam Stosur both debuted on the overall top 100 list, with Stosur scoring 88th spot with $36 million, and Barty at 100th with $28 million.

You can peep the top ten, and specialised lists, below:

AFR YOUNG RICH LIST 2020, TOP 10