Who are Australia's richest people right now. Looking at the Australian Financial Review Rich List, click or scroll through as we profile the wealthiest people across the country and how they made their fortunes. All figures in Australian dollars unless otherwise stated.
Tim Roberts, son of Multiplex found John Roberts, clawed his way to 30th on the 2019 Rich List, up from 73rd in 2018. He owns aviation services firm AvWest and a fleet of aircraft and stakes in hedge fund management company Warburton Group and miner Mineral Resources. With an estimated fortune of $2.38 billion, Roberts has also become involved in lobster fishing after spending time as a child in the Albrolhos Islands off the Western Australia coast. His investment in the industry is estimated to be about $700 million.
Born in the Netherlands and based in Brisbane, John Van Lieshout made a killing in 2006 when he sold furniture chain Super A-Mart, the business he founded in 1972, for about $500 million. The tycoon has since invested shrewdly in real estate, including Unison Projects' 38-lot residential estate near Brisbane. Van Lieshout's net worth estimate has risen to $2.51 billion from last year's $1.92 billion after Financial Review added investments that weren't previously known about.
Reclusive mining heiress Angela Bennett, with an estimated worth of $2.62 billion, which is up from $2.17 billion last year, keeps a very low profile and avoids being photographed at all costs. The camera-shy mogul runs Wright Prospecting and was famously involved in a long-running feud with fellow mining heiress Gina Rinehart. The investment business run by her son Todd has interests in resources, financial services and property.
Cotton On founder Nigel Austin started out by selling denim jackets out of the back of his Ford Bronco in Geelong's Beckley Market in 1988 and has worked his way up to a net worth of $2.68 billion. The retail group has more than 1,400 stores in nearly 20 countries across the globe. Austin also holds a majority stake in City Chic Collective, which has seen its share price skyrocket in recent years.
Valued at $2.72 billion, British-Australian business maestro Sir Michael Hintze is the founder, group executive chairman and senior investment officer of hedge fund CQS, which has $24 billion under management. Prior to establishing London-based CQS, he worked for Goldman Sachs and Credit Suisse First Boston, and even served as a captain in the Australian Army. He also owns a portfolio of farming properties in eastern Australia through MH Premium Farms. His net worth has increased from $2.43 billion in 2018.
Australia's fast food king with an estimated wealth of $2.79 billion, Canada-born entrepreneur Jack Cowin controls Australian Burger King franchise Hungry Jack's through his company Competitive Foods. He is also a major shareholder in Domino's Pizza in Australia and the US and has US investments including Apache Industrial Services and RCX Solutions. Last year saw him lose the Sydney Harbour Bridge contract, which he held with fellow businessmen Brett Blundy and Paul Cave, to Hammons Holdings.
Melbourne's Solomon Lew has spent the last 40 years building an impressive retail empire and in 2019 has an estimated net worth of $2.83 billion, up from $2.55 billion a year before. The chairman of Premier Investments has hit the headlines with his campaign against the board of struggling department chain Myer, in which he has a sizeable shareholding. Among other diverse investments, Premier Investments owns the Smiggle stationery brand and has a 28% stake in electrical group Breville, which has seen sales grow significantly in the past year.
It's something of a family affair for David Hains, founder and owner of Portland House Group. The hedge fund solely exists to manage the $2.9 billion family fortune, with Hains' eldest son Stephen running its bond and derivatives division, Richard overseeing its managed funds and Michael managing the equities book. Hains is perhaps best known for restructuring US steelmaker Wheeling-Pittsburgh. He is also a champion racehorse breeder.
The eldest daughter of media mogul Rupert Murdoch, Prudence MacLeod can thank her father's sale of 21st Century Fox to the Walt Disney Corporation for her $3.1 billion fortune. A new entry on the Rich List, she is married to Alasdair MacLeod, who worked at Murdoch's News Corporation for over 20 years and now runs venture capital management firm Macdoch Ventures.
Lindsay Fox is the man behind Linfox, Asia-Pacific's biggest privately-held logistics company. Fox, a former professional Aussie Rules football player, owns the company outright and his sons effectively run the firm, while his daughters look after philanthropic activities through the Fox Family Foundation. Fox's fortune is estimated at $3.1 billion in 2019, down from $3.56 billion the year before.
Founder and CEO of logistics software provider WiseTech Global, Richard White has amassed a fortune of $3.31 billion. ASX-listed WiseTech's management system is used by more than 8,000 logistics companies across 130 countries. Prior to making billions in the software industry, he repaired guitars for bands including AC/DC, among various other entrepreneurial ventures.
Bianca Rinehart is the daughter of mining mogul Gina Rinehart. Bianca, who has a fortune of $3.62 billion, and her brother John have been in an ongoing dispute with their mother over the management of The Hope Margaret Hancock Trust, set up by their grandfather. The trust owns 23.45% of Hancock Prospecting, while Gina owns the remainder. Iron ore sales recently saw their mother's fortune swell although there remain divisions over how it will be shared.
Rupert Murdoch's son Lachlan, like his sister Prudence, made it into the 2019 Rich List's top 30 thanks in part to his father's sale of 21st Century Fox to The Walt Disney Company. However, as co-chairman of News Corp and executive chairman and CEO of Fox Corporation, he is likely to have made it on to the list top 200 regardless. He's ranked 18 on the 2019 list, with a fortune of $3.62 billion.
Read more about how the Murdoch family made their fortune
Poker industry mogul Len Ainsworth established gaming machine firm Aristocrat Leisure in 1953, passed the company on to his family in 1994 and founded Ainsworth Game Technology in 1995. The gambling entrepreneur, who is in his 90s, in 2018 sold most of his shares in Ainsworth for $473 million. The Ainsworth family's 2019 fortune of $4.01 billion was slightly down on the previous year's figure of $4.02 billion.
Alan Wilson and his family own about two-thirds of plumbing and bathroom products supplier Reece, which was established by Harold Joseph Reece in 1920. Wilson is executive chairman and his son Peter CEO, but his brothers Bruce and John have both retired from the board. Their respective sons, Andrew and Bruce C Wilson, are now non-executive directors. The family fortune is estimated at $4.07 billion, up from $3.87 billion in 2018 due to surging Reece sales and other investments rising.
Controversial businessman and politician Clive Palmer, who wants to spend some of his billions on building a replica Titanic, saw his wealth soar to $4.09 billion this year, up from $2.84 billion in 2018. He recently expanded his mining company Mineralogy's operations in Western Australia, thanks to profits from an iron ore joint venture with China-owned CITIC. But all the wealth in the world didn't help him in the 2019 federal election; his United Australia party failed to win a single seat.
Read more about Clive Palmer's life and his bid to build a new Titanic
Lang Walker, with a fortune of $4.67 billion, has been in the property development game for more than 50 years. He made a foresighted withdrawal from the residential market a few years ago, but remains busy with other projects. In addition to various office developments keeping his Walker Corporation busy, Walker himself is an investor in biotech and diagnostic companies. He saw his wealth rise considerably in 2019, from $3.47 billion the year before, as he continues to invest astutely.
The son of the late media magnate Kerry Packer and also Mariah Carey's former fiancé, James Packer is ranked at 13 with a fortune of $4.94 billion. But Forbes reports that his wealth is set to fall after he sold nearly 50% of his stake in casino company Crown Resorts to his business partner Lawrence Ho's Melco. He also recently pledged to donate $1 million to help fight fires in New South Wales.
Indian-born businessman Vivek Chaand Sehgal founded auto parts company Samvardhana Motherson Group with his mother SL Sehgal in 1975 and hasn't looked back. He moved to Australia in 1993 and his group now has 270 plants in 41 countries. He saw his wealth fall slightly to $5.5 billion from $5.88 billion in 2018.
Media mogul Kerry Stokes is chairman of Seven West Media and has seen his wealth build thanks to a diversified strategy through his Seven Group Holdings, which owns various mining, industrial and gas interests. He also has direct stakes in a range of companies including a gold miner and cancer drug developer, all of which has helped drive his overall wealth to $5.69 billion.
Retail magnate John Gandel owns a good chunk of Melbourne's Chadstone, Australia's biggest mall, which attracts 24 million visitors a year. He also has a large stake in Vicinity Centres, which owns the other half of Chadstone, and various other retail sites across the country. His estimated net worth is $6.6 billion, up from $6.45 billion in 2018.
South African-born Ivan Glasenberg has been CEO of global commodities trader and miner Glencore since 2002, although he announced his intention to step down within the next few years. He is the company's largest shareholder, according to Forbes.
Mining legend Andrew 'Twiggy' Forrest made the bulk of his $7.99 billion fortune heading Fortescue Metals Group and pocketed $1.24 billion in full-year dividends for 2019. Forrest also owns various private companies including a gas firm and a beef exporter, and has also diversified his portfolio with other investments such as oyster farms. A chunk of his earnings helps fund his philanthropic organisation The Minderoo Foundation.
Frank Lowy is the richest of all the shopping mall tycoons among the wealthiest Australians. The Australian-Israeli magnate co-created the Westfield Corporation with partner John Saunders in the 1950s and received $1.3 billion in cash and shares when it was acquired by Unibail-Rodamco in 2018. Lowy and his sons now focus on the family's private investment company, LFG Holdings, which has a range of investments formerly including a stake in shopping group Scentre.
Mike Cannon-Brookes, co-founder and co-CEO of software development company Atlassian, saw his wealth nearly double to $9.63 billion in 2019 due to selling shares in the hugely successful company. He is also a major investor in renewables and alternative food and recently announcing that early-stage funding had been secured for the $20 billion Sun Cable solar farm project – a scheme also backed by mining magnate and philanthropist Andrew "Twiggy" Forrest.
Atlassian co-founder and co-CEO Scott Farquhar started his career with low expectations. Along with business partner Mike Cannon-Brookes, he founded software firm Atlassian in 2002 aiming to earn a typical graduate salary of $47,500. In 2018 the Nasdaq-listed company's annual revenue surpassed US$1 billion for the first time. Farquhar, who has also seen his fortune nearly double to $9.75 billion, also has a stake in SafetyCulture, a start-up which provides workplace safety products.
Chinese-Australian property developer Hui Wing Mau's estimated net worth has hit double figures at $10.39 billion in 2019 thanks to his Shimao Property Holdings and a strong Hong Kong dollar. Shimao has a range of commercial and hotel property interests in both China and Australia. Hui, who holds Australian citizenship after studying at the University of South Australia, also holds stakes in domestic meat exporter Bindaree Beef.
Nicknamed "High-Rise Harry", real estate baron Harry Triguboff is the founder of Meriton, Australia's largest home builder, and the firm behind the construction of World Tower, Sydney's tallest residential building. One of the first developers to see the potential of high-rise living while others focused on single homes, his fortune is estimated at $13.54 billion, up from $12.77 billion in 2018.
Hancock Prospecting chairman Gina Rinehart transformed her late father's failing iron ore company into a wildly successful business and her stake in Hope Downs, one of the country's most prolific mines, has made her billions. Her 2019 net worth of $13.81 billion is up from $12.68 billion the year before but she remains in a dispute over mining royalties with her eldest children John and Bianca.
The 2019 Australian Financial Review Rich List is topped by paper and packaging tycoon Anthony Pratt after his company Visy's earnings grew and a lower dollar boosted paper exports. His US-based Pratt Industries, which makes corrugated cardboard, also saw its earnings balloon thanks to Donald Trump's corporate tax cuts. Pratt's net worth this year is estimated at $15.57 billion, which marks a substantial increase from his 2018 wealth of $12.9 billion.