The World's Youngest Self-Made Billionaire Is 26 Years Old
PHOTO: GETTY
A ROUND OF INVESTMENT FOR PAYMENT SYSTEM STRIPE HAS MADE ITS TWO FOUNDERS BOTH BILLIONAIRES.
A round of investment for payment system Stripe has made its two founders both billionaires.
28-year-old Patrick Collison and his 26-year-old brother John Collison are worth $1.46 billion a piece after their online payments company announced a new round of funding worth $12.3 billion last week.
Stripe, which is based in San Francisco operates in over 25 countries and allows both private individuals and businesses to accept payments over the Internet.
Interest was secured from a host of prime investors including CapitalG and General Catalyst Partners. The brothers, who now own an estimated 12% of their company after the funding, according to Forbes, are yet to publically confirm their win fall.
At just 26 years old, John Collison – the younger of the two brothers and Stripe’s president, is now the world’s youngest self-made billionaire. He takes the position from Snapchat cofounder and CEO Evan Spiegel, also 26, as he is two months younger.
Patrick Collison and Snapchat cofounder Bobby Murphy, aged 28, are the only other self-made billionaires in the world under age 30, according to Forbes listings. The world's youngest billionaire is Norwway's Alexandra Andresen, who at the tender age of 20, inherited a 42% stake in his family’s investment company Ferd.
He along with his sister, one year his senior, are reported to be worth $1.6 billion each.
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Jay-Z Becomes The World’s First Billionaire Rapper
GQ STAFF 3 JUNE 2019
FORBES VALUED JAY-Z’S EMPIRE AT $US1 BILLION, INCLUDING REAL ESTATE AND OTHER VENTURES. IMAGE: GETTY/ISTOCK
FORBES VALUED THE RAPPER AND BUSINESS MOGUL’S EMPIRE AT $US1 BILLION.
It’s a conversation that every hip-hop fan and rap fiend can debate for hours: who is the greatest rapper of all time? How one even goes about answering this is beyond our capability of reason, as each artist of notebrings something to the genre, be it through his or her sound or storytelling.
But when it comes to the top echelon of rap and distinguishing between those who can spit into a mic, and those who can rhyme with flow, there are certain names that hold the monopoly over the discussion. Tupac, Nas, Eminem and Biggie all had influence, but it was Jay-Z who turned his skills into a business empire.
As Forbes reports, the icon has accumulated a fortune that “conservatively totals $1 billion, making him one of only a handful of entertainers to become a billionaire – and the first hip-hop artist to do so.”
The fortune isn’t one based on music alone, however. Jay-Z may have built his kingdom with music as the foundation, but from there it has expanded to encompass liquor, art, real estate (homes in Los Angeles, the Hamptons, Tribeca) and stakes in companies like Uber.
As many a tea towel or embroidered pillow from K-Mart likes to declare, it’s not about the journey but the destination. With that in mind, Jay-Z’s journey is one that even Hollywood’s most notable writers would struggle to imagine, a rags-to-riches story perhaps, but one in which luck was overshadowed by hard work, determination and unwavering self-drive.
Jay-Z grew up in Brooklyn’s notorious Marcy housing projects, where he was a drug dealer before becoming a musician. When he did make the shift, Jay-Z started his own label, Roc-A-Fella Records to release his 1996 debut, Reasonable Doubt. It’s only been up from there, with the rapper going on to achieve 14 No.1 albums, 22 Grammy awards, and over $500 million in pretax earnings.
As Forbes notes, central to the rapper’s fortune was his vision to build his own brands, rather than promote someone else’s. Jay-Z started the clothing line Rocawear in 1999, selling it to Iconix in 2007 for $204 million. He then created the cognac D’Usse that he co-owns with Bacardi, and later moved on to Tidal, a music-streaming service.
To calculate his net worth, Forbes looked at the artist’s stakes in companies like Armand de Brignac champagne, added up his income, subtracted a substantial amount to account for his superstar lifestyle, and then checked their numbers with a roster of outside experts to ensure the estimates were fair and conservative.
As well as his companies, it’s believed that Jay-Z’s real estate is valued at $50 million, with a $26 million East Hampton mansion, a $88 million Bel Air estate, and a Tibeca penthouse, snagged for $6.85 million in 2004.
With a number of other wise investments and business ventures, it’s clear that Jay-Z really is a business, man. But to have acquired this kind of fortune already, it’s anyone’s guess as to just how Jay-Z will continue to expand as if one thing is certain, it’s that this is an icon who is only just getting started.
These Are The 10 Richest Billionaires In The World For 2019
JESSICA CAMPBELL5 MAR 2019
There may be fewer billionaires in the world this year, but the ultra-rich still managed to amass a combined worth of $8.7 trillion.
Money – as a kid it seems like some elusive concept, simply a means to purchasing that snack pack at the canteen or saving enough for a Tamagotchi. But as you get older, the importance of those numbers in the ole bank account take on an ever-increasing significance. Sure, it’s not something you should base your whole career around. But it is important and as the saying goes, if you can find something you love and make money out of it, you’re well on your way to finding success.
Certainly, to take a look at the Forbes billionaires list of 2019, these mega-rich humans are every inch the successful worker, having found a passion they turned into some of the most lucrative businesses in the world. But as Forbes outlines, even the wealthiest are not immune to economic forces and weak stock markets, as their results found that for only the second year in a decade, both the number of billionaires and their total wealth shrank.
This year, Forbes identified 2,153 billionaires, 55 fewer than 2018. Of those, a record 994, or 46 per cent, are poorer than they were in the previous year. But of course, this is all relative as the ultra-rich still managed to amass a combined worth of $8.7 trillion – a number so staggering, we wouldn’t even know how many zeros are to be written down should you see it printed numerically.
In terms of countries with the most mega-rich humans, the Asia-Pacific was hardest hit with 60 fewer 10-figure fortunes. Leading the charge though, were the Americas and the U.S. which are the only two regions that have more billionaires than they did a year ago. Now, there are a record 607 billionaires in the States, which includes 14 of the world’s 20 richest.
Even though the number of billionaires may have fallen, some resourceful and relentless entrepreneurs still managed to make some big coin, with 195 newcomers joining the ranks. The richest newcomer is Colin Huang, the founder of Chinese discount web retailer Pinduoduo, which went public in the U.S. in July. Other notable entrants include Spotify’s Daniel EK and Martin Lorentzon; Juul Labs’ James Monsees and Adam Bowen, Kind Bar’s Daniel Lubetzky and cosmetics wunderkind Kylie Jenner, who also happens to be the youngest billionaire at the age of 21. Yikes.
To kick-start your 2019 financial goals, here are the 10 richest billionaires in the world for 2019, according to Forbes.
1. Jeff Bezos & family - $185 billion
Bezos, who founded e-commerce colossus Amazon in 1994 out of his garage in Seattle, remains CEO with a 16% stake. In 2018, Amazon pulled in $230 billion in revenues and a record $10 billion in net profit, up from $3 billion the year prior. As well as this, Bezos also owns The Washington Post and Blue Origin, an aerospace company that is developing a rocket for commercial use.
2. Bill Gates - $136.6 billion
With his wife Melinda, Bill Gates chairs the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, the world’s largest private charitable foundation. It works to save lives and improve global health and is also working with Rotary International to eliminate polio.
As many will be familiar with, Gates made his fortune with Microsoft but has since sold or given away much of his stake in the company, owning just over 1% of the shares. He has invested in a mix of stocks and other assets but remains a board member of Microsoft, which he founded with Paul Allen in 1975. To date, Gates has donated about US$35.8 billion worth of Microsoft stock to the Gates Foundation.
3. Warren Buffett - $116.7 billion
Known as the “Oracle of Omaha,” Warren Buffett is one of the most successful investors of all time. He runs Berkshire Hathaway, which owns more than 60 companies, including insurer Geico, battery maker Duracell and restaurant chain Dairy Queen.
Buffett has promised to give away over 99% of his fortune. In 2018, he donated US$3.4 billion, much of it to the foundation of friends Bill and Melinda Gates. In 2010, he and Gates launched the Giving Pledge, asking billionaires to commit to donating half their wealth to charitable causes.
4. Bernard Arnault & family - $107 billion
One of the world’s ultimate taste-makers, Bernard Arnault oversees an empire of 70 brands including Louis Vuitton and Sephora. His luxury goods group, LVMH, posted record sales and profits in 2018, thanks in part to increased spending by Chinese customers. The arts patron is the visionary behind the $135 million Frank Gehry-designed Foundation Louis Vuitton museum near Paris, opened in 2014.
5. Carlos Slim Helu & family - $90 billion
Mexico’s richest man and his family control America Movil, Latin America’s biggest mobile telecom firm. With foreign telecom partners, Slim bought a stake in Telmex, Mexico’s only phone company, in 1990. Telmex is now part of America Movil.
6. Amancio Ortego - $88.7 billion
Amancio Ortega is one of the richest men in Europe and the wealthiest retailer in the world. A pioneer in fast fashion, he cofounded Inditex, known for its Zara fashion chain, with his ex-wife Rosalia Mera in 1975. He owns about 60% of Madrid-listed Inditex, which has 8 brands, including Massimo Dutti and Pull & Bear, and 7,500 stores around the world. Ortega typically earns more than US$400 million in dividends a year.
7. Larry Ellison - $88.5 billion
Ellison cofounded software firm Oracle in 1977 to tap into the growing need for customer relationship management databases. He gave up the Oracle CEO role in 2014 but still serves as chairman of the board and chief technology officer. As part of Oracle’s push into cloud computing, it acquired cloud-software firm Netsuite for $9.3 billion in 2016.
In May 2016, Ellison pledged US$200 million to the University of Southern California for a cancer treatment centre. He also joined Tesla’s board in December 2018, after purchasing 3 million Tesla shares earlier that year.
8. Mark Zuckerberg - $88.3 billion
After facing another year of criticism for fake news and abuse on Facebook, CEO Mark Zuckerberg said his priority in 2019 is tackling social issues. In April 2018, he testified before Congress after it was revealed that Facebook shared users’ data with political consulting firm Cambridge Analytica.
Zuckerberg started Facebook at Harvard in 2004 at the age of 19 for students to match names with faces in class. He took Facebook public in May 2012 and still owns nearly 17% of the stock. In December 2015, he and his wife, Priscilla Chan, pledged to give away 99% of their Facebook stake over their lifetimes.
9. Michael Bloomberg - $78.7 billion
Michael Bloomberg cofounded financial information and media company Bloomberg LP in 1981. He put in the seed funding for the company and now owns 88% of the business, which has revenues north of US$9 billion.
Bloomberg got his start on Wall Street in1966 with an entry level job at investment bank Salomon Brothers. He was fired 15 years later. An active philanthropist, he has donated more than US$5 billion to gun control, climate change and other causes.
10. Larry Page - $72 billion
Larry Page sits at the helm of Alphabet, the parent company of Google, healthcare division Calico, smart home appliance division Nest and more. He cofounded Google in 1998 with fellow Stanford Ph.D. student Sergey Brin. With Brin, Page invented Google’s PageRank algorithm, which powers the search engine.
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Rihanna Is The World’s Richest Female Musician With a $600M Fortune
GQ STAFF 4 JUNE 2019
RIHANNA ATTENDS THE FENTY BEAUTY BY RIHANNA ANNIVERSARY EVENT ON OCTOBER 3, 2018 IN SYDNEY. IMAGE: GETTY.
RIHANNA HAS EVOLVED FROM SINGER TO STYLE ICON AND MAKEUP ENTREPRENEUR, AND SOON SHE’LL BECOME THE FIRST BLACK WOMAN TO HELM A LUXURY FASHION HOUSE.
Rihanna’s story, and her path to success, is one that even Hollywood would struggle to script. The Barbados native overcame a number of hardships in her time, including an abusive addict father. But when her first album was released in 2005, hers was a rapid rise to fame as songs like “Umbrella” and “SOS” saw her become a household name.
Rappers and stars of hip-hop wanted to work with her, while others simply admired from afar. Rihanna became one of the best-selling artists of all time, with 14 of her singles reaching number one on the US Billboard Hot 100. But when a well-publicised assault by then-boyfriend Chris Brown in 2009 seemed to suggest that not all struggles were behind her, Rihanna only worked harder at her craft.
In the years since, Rihanna has evolved from singer-of-the-moment to style icon and makeup entrepreneur, it seems that there is no field or creative outlet that is beyond Rihanna’s influence. As Forbes reports, the star is now the world's richest female musician.
Fenty Beauty alone saw the singer shake up the world of beauty. The brand sent shock waves through the makeup industry by releasing 40 inclusive shades of foundation in 2017. Launching at Sephora and online at FentyBeauty.com, the brand quickly became a viral success and racked up $100 million in sales in its first few weeks.
Last year, Fenty Beauty generated an estimated $570 million in revenue last year, after only 15 months in business. Forbes estimates that the entire operation is worth, conservatively, more than $3 billion.
Rihanna also co-owns the Savage X Fenty lingerie line with Los Angeles-based online fashion firm TechStyle Fashion Group and has millions in earnings from her career touring and releasing as a singer, which make up the rest of her fortune.
All of these efforts, as Forbes reports, has seen Rihanna amass a staggering $600 million fortune, making her the wealthiest female musician in the world, ahead of the likes of Madonna ($570 million), Celine Dion ($450 million) and Beyoncé ($400 million).
The announcement from Forbes makes an interesting point, which is the value found in the personal care industry. Incredibly lucrative, findings from Grand View Research suggest the industry could swell to more than $200 billion in sales by 2025, up from closer to $130 billion in 2016. On the Forbes list of Richest Self-Made Women, 11 out of 80 made their money in beauty or skin care products. The advantages of already having a platform and fan base are unparalleled, allowing stars like Rihanna to turn to the low-cost marketing opportunity presented by social media.
Soon, Rihanna will become the first black woman in charge of a major fashion house after she launched new brand, Fenty Maison, under French luxury goods conglomerate LVMH in May, solidifying her spot in fashion history.
big day for the culture. thank you Mr.Arnault for believing in this little girl from the left side of an island, and for giving me the opportunity to grow with you at @LVMHhttps://t.co/6ToY8MkDQB pic.twitter.com/Q9eF35576T
— Rihanna (@rihanna)
May 10, 2019
The clothing house will make high-end clothes, shoes, accessories and jewellery. Speaking about the offer, Rihanna said in an interview with The New York Times Style Magazine, “They extended the offer to me and it was a no-brainer because LVMH is a machine. Bernard Arnault was so enthusiastic; he trusted me and my vision.”
The fashion line includes sizes up to US 14, reflecting the same ethos of inclusivity that Rihanna developed at Fenty Beauty. It will exist under the same umbrella as famous brands such as Dior and Givenchy, marking LVMH’s first new house in more than 30 years. Clearly, Rihanna is not done building her empire.
With her gravitational pull and sartorial style, it seems that this new venture will certainly prove to be a lucrative one.
5 Signs of Your Job Might Be Causing You ‘Occupational Burnout’
GQ STAFF 29 MAY 2019
THE WORLD HEALTH ORGANISATION HAS CLASSIFIED BURNOUT AS A DIAGNOSABLE CONDITION. IMAGE: FOX SEARCHLIGHT PICTURES.
BURNOUT IS NOW A DIAGNOSABLE CONDITION, BUT IT CAN BE DEBILITATING FOR THOSE WHO EXPERIENCE IT. HERE ARE THE SIGNS YOUR FUSE MIGHT BE SHORTENING…
It’s official. No, you aren’t a whingeing or ungrateful employer, you’re actually suffering from a diagnosable condition: burnout.
In any work environment, it’s highly likely – almost expected – that you’ll deal with stress at some point or another. When deadlines come about, projects aren’t working out, or a presentation is on the horizon, stress creeps into our lives slowly but with a grip tighter than that of a Pit-bull owner walking their dog around a children’s playground.
Any job is going to have its moments where the work is hard, the hours stretch for a little longer each evening, and your boss might even be busting your balls. But a job worth staying in will see these moments pass, and not be a constant that you have to live with daily. While it’s common to hear the phrase “burnout” thrown around by those feeling overstressed or under-looked for that promotion, for some it really is a health condition.
Gallup reports that 23 per cent of employees report feeling burnout at work very often or always, while an additional 44 per cent reported feeling it sometimes. The World Health Organisation (WHO) has weighed in on the problem, but taking the significant step of adding burnout to its International Classification of Diseases.
As they describe, “Burn-out is a syndrome conceptualised as resulting from chronic workplace stress that has not been successfully managed,” adding that it “refers specifically to phenomena in the occupational context and should not be applied to describe experiences in other areas of life.”
It’s important to note that burnout isn’t simply a case of boredom or fatigue. Severe burnout can be debilitating, with sufferers growing increasingly cynical, feeling inadequate and that they aren’t accomplishing anything at work, and even struggling to get out of bed.
Though burnout isn’t a new concept – the term was coined in 1974 by psychologist Herbert Freudenberger – the hope is that it will now be recognised as a real problem that many employers have yet to combat in a real way. Costing employers between $125 and $190 billion every year in healthcare costs, researchers estimate that workplace stress accounts for 8 per cent of national spending on healthcare.
With that in mind, here are the signs you might be experiencing burnout and what you can do about it.
You’re always connected
In today’s age, the 9 to 5 work-day is almost non-existent. Now, we’re checking our emails as soon as we work up, staying up late to finish up assignments and other work before eventually checking our work email again. And even after all that, it seems now businesses feel that making calls outside of business hours is acceptable. Consequently, work is consuming more and more of our lives.
To ease the compulsion to check your smartphone, the Centre for Humane Technology suggests turning off the colour. Grayscaling the screen may make you less likely to pick it up and also encourages you to spend less time online.
Your job is your identity
Researchers suggest that burnout stems partly from our fundamental relationship with work. People who derive all their satisfaction and self-worth from their jobs are more likely to burn out when things go south in the workplace.
While being passion about your job is a good thing, it’s important to be able to detach from work and find worth in other areas and aspects of life. It’s vital to have other things in your life that contribute to your sense of identity, rather than solely your job title. Take up a new hobby, one that’s personally challenging and satisfying.
You feel a lack of control
Inefficacy is a symptom of burnout, and gives the sense that you’re not accomplishing anything at work. It’s something that’s easy to experience when you find yourself in a job that gives you no control. If you don’t have agency over your schedule, it’s hard to optimise your workload and things can then start to pile up.
By simply scheduling your workday, the risk of burnout is reduced. It’s also important to remember that you can say ‘no’ to more work requests, all it takes is an occasional, ‘Sorry, but I just can’t do that’ to make you feel more empowered.
Your co-workers are idiots
For many, the unpleasant interactions they experience with co-workers daily can be a great source of stress and workplace negativity. All workers want to feel valued and if that isn’t happening in your workplace, it’s important to be the change you desire. Rather than being dismissive of other support staff, be open to conversation and courteous to those who share the office space with you. Even simply making small-talk with another worker at the communal coffee machine can foster a greater sense of inclusivity and boost morale.
Your job is boring
Tedious or unsatisfying work undermines your sense of worth. Nobody likes throwing away eight (or more) hours a day on doing nothing, but you also have to pay rent. Researchers suggest “job crafting,” which means working within the confines of your job to focus on what you enjoy or find fulfilling. Whether it’s being a mentor to an intern or simply taking on more work doing something that you genuinely like, then go for it.
We may find ourselves working longer hours now, and being constantly connected to our work selves, but it’s important to keep work in perspective. A job title on its own is meaningless, it’s the life you create that goes along with it that holds meaning.
