AFR rich list 2021: Gina Rinehart, Twiggy Forrest Australia’s wealthiest billionaires

The top 200 wealthiest Australians have been revealed, with a record number of women making the list.

The richest 200 Australians have come out of the pandemic unscathed and raking in the money, with the elite group now worth a combined $480 billion – up 13 per cent in the last six months.

Mining magnate Gina Rinehart has once again topped the Australian Financial Review Rich List, becoming Australia’s richest person worth a record $31.06 billion – up $2.2 billion in just six months.

The 2021 Rich List reveals where the economy rebounded after last year’s recession, with iron ore, retail and property the big winners, driving the wealth of the country’s top 200.

The rich list’s wealth is equivalent to 25 per cent of Australia’s $1.9 annual trillion gross domestic product.

This year sees a record number of women with 39 on the Rich List, representing 18 per cent of the list.

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Melanie Perkins, co-founder of Canva, an online tool that allows users to create sophisticated graphic layouts was one of the 39 women and the youngest in the top 10. Picture Rohan Kelly

With the price of iron ore now at record levels thanks to a surge in Chinese demand, Western Australia mining mogul Andrew Forrest comes in at number two with a wealth of $27.2 billion, up from $23 billion.

Controversial figure Clive Palmer has also seen his wealth increase from $9 billion to $13 billion and now sits at number seven.

Tech and shopping

But Rich Listers from the technology sector are nipping at the heels of miners.

Aussie tech giant Atlassian’s Mike Cannon-Brookes and Scott Farquhar now have fortunes exceeding $20 billion each.

Mr Cannon-Brookes came in at number three with $20.18 billion, up from $16.93 billion, and Mr Farquhar sits at number five on $20 billion, up from $16.69 billion. Atlassian recently announced that staff will only be required to come into the office four times a year.

The global surge in online shopping gave Anthony Pratt’s cardboard box manufacturer Visy a massive boost, taking him into the fourth spot with $20.09 billion, up from $19 billion.

Breaking into the top 10 on the back of their Canva graphic design software business are Melanie Perkins, 34, and Cliff Obrecht, 35.

The couple is now worth $7.98 billion, up from $3.43 billion last year, and they also take out the title of the youngest rich listers in the top 10. The average age of a Rich Lister is 66.

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Atlasssian tech founders Mike Cannon-Brookes and Scott Farquhar took out two spots in the top 10. Picture: Supplied

Alongside Ms Rinehart, the rise of Melanie Perkins marks the first time two women have appeared in the top 10 rich list since 2016.

“The remote-work revolution is also helping fuel wealth for the nation’s technology billionaires. The fortunes of Atlassian founders Mike Cannon-Brookes and Scott Farquhar have passed $20 billion for the first time as their paying customer base rises beyond 200,000,” added Rich List co-editor Michael Bailey.

“Another Australian-made software-as-a-service gaining global ubiquity is Canva. Founders Melanie Perkins and Cliff Obrecht cracked the Rich List’s top 10 as their simplified graphic design platform amasses a population of active users on par with the population of Italy.”

With Australia’s real estate obsession hitting new heights, Meriton founder Harry Triguboff has built his wealth from $14.42 billion last year to $17.27 billion in 2021 and takes sixth place.

The property developer has recently made headlines for controversial comments where he called bosses “parasites” if they let their staff work from home.

Hong Kong-based property mogul Hui Wing Mau slipped from fourth spot to eighth as his wealth decreased sharply from $18.06 billion to $11.70 billion.

Frank Lowy’s timing in offloading Westfield in 2018 has ensured his wealth remains stable at $8.5 billion, positioning him in ninth place.

Mining magnate Gina Rinehart took out the number one spot in the Rich List. Picture: Kai Godeck

Record number of billionaires

Australia now has a record 111 billionaires, and the cut-off to make the Rich List sits at an all-time high of $590 million, up from the $540 million needed to secure a spot in 2020.

The Rich List also includes eight billionaires in the elite “ten-digit club” – those with wealth exceeding $10 billion.

“The commodities boom is fuelling extraordinary wealth generation among our Rich Listers. Collectively the Rinehart family is worth $40 billion, twice the amount of the next richest family on the list, the Pratts,” said Rich List co-editor, Julie-anne Sprague.

“This year’s Rich List features a record number of women, many of whom have built their businesses from the ground up and expanded offshore. They include Mecca’s Jo Horgan, Decjuba’s Tania Austin and Megan Wynne, a one-time occupational therapist who’s now running the $1.5 billion human services giant, APM.”

Megan Wynne, a one-time occupational therapist who’s now running the $1.5 billion human services giant, APM made the list. Picture: News Corp Australia

New entrants

Overall, this year’s Rich List contains 20 new entrants, including Tania Austin who debuts at number 153 with $721 million, thanks to the success of fashion chain Decjuba.

Tesla chair Robyn Denholm is also worth $688 million and ranked 162, based on the electric car maker’s stock options she has picked up.

Also joining the Rich List are Grant Petty and Doug Clarke who round out the list at 199 and 200 with $592 million and $590 million and are the co-founders of Blackmagic Designs whose sales of affordable, high-end cameras and video production equipment has boomed off demand from YouTubers and social media influencers.

The pandemic-fuelled affection for buying sneakers and streetwear has seen Gold Coast-based Culture Kings owners Tah-nee and Simon Beard debut on the Rich List with a wealth of $626 million. Aged 32 and 37, they’re two of the youngest on the list.

Former NRL player Wes Maas set up his Dubbo construction business and is now worth $593 million. Picture: Maas Group

In a feel-good story, former NRL player Wes Maas, who played for the South Sydney Rabbitohs in the early 2000s, bought one bobcat and a tipper truck in 2002.

His Dubbo construction business is now worth around $1 billion, with Mr Maas debuting on the 2021 Rich List with a wealth of $593 million.

Across the country, 72 of the Rich Listers were from NSW, Victoria boasted 58, Queensland claimed 21, Western Australia had 20 and SA, NT, ACT and Tasmania each scooped up one each.

Ten richest Aussies

1. Gina Rinehart – $31.06 billion

2. Andrew Forrest – $27.25 billion

3. Mike Cannon-Brookes – $20.18 billion

4. Anthony Pratt and family – $20.09 billion

5. Scott Farquhar – $20 billion

6. Harry Triguboff – $17.27 billion

7. Clive Palmer – $13.01 billion

8. Hui Wing Mau – $11.70 billion

9. Frank Lowy – $8.51 billion

10. Melanie Perkins and Cliff Obrecht – $7.98 billion