Unlikely way three Bundaberg farmers made $1.21 billion

It’s a list usually dominated by bankers, property tycoons and mining magnates. But now, these unlikely Queenslanders are taking over.

Lex, Peter and Andrew Greensill have gone from watermelon farmers to billionaires. Picture: Right Image Photography

Three hi-vis-clad farmers from rural Queensland have become unlikely rich-listers after turning profits from their parent’s watermelon farm into a “unicorn” business.

Brothers Peter, Andrew and Lex Greensill, from Bundaberg, have made their debut on the Financial Review Rich List for 2019, taking out the 75th spot thanks to their stunning combined wealth of $1.21 billion.

They pulled off the epic feat after investing cash from the family’s farm into Greensill, a supply chain financing business founded in 2011 by Lex Greensill, which scored a $336 million capital injection from growth equity firm General Atlantic last year.

Lex, Peter and Andrew Greensill. Picture: Right Image Photography

Lex Greensill with Prince Charles. Picture: Facebook

Lex Greensill was made a Commander of the Order of the British Empire in 2017. Picture: Facebook

It catapulted Greensill into $1 billion-plus unicorn status (a start-up company worth more than $1 billion) and made the brothers instant rich-listers.

The fintech supplies working capital to small businesses based on their invoices, which means companies can be paid more quickly.

It has supplied tens of billions of dollars in financing to companies across the globe — and it was inspired by the struggles of the Greensill parents, Judy and Lloyd.

“The truth is all of it started with watching the pain that my parents experienced dealing with wholesalers and with big corporates buying fruit and vegetables from them,” Lex previously told the ABC.

Peter Greensill (left) and brother Lex have created a billion-dollar unicorn. Picture: Hollie Adams/The Australian

Peter sits on the board of the company and also runs the everyday operations of the family’s separate farming business, along with Andrew.

In 2017, Lex, who is based in the UK, was made a Commander of the Order of the British Empire (CBE) for his contribution to the economy as part of the Queen’s birthday honours.

Speaking to the AFR last year, the fintech founder said he was “still a farmer at heart” despite his corporate success.

“Bundaberg is my home. It’s where I came from, and I visited there about eight times last year with my wife. We have never considered the thought of changing our roots,” he told the publication

“I’m a farmer at heart. Whenever I’m home I jump on a tractor and have a play. I don’t think of myself as a corporate titan.”

2019 RICH LIST

Paper and packaging mogul Anthony Pratt is Australia’s richest man once again, taking out the top spot with his $15 billion fortune.

Gina Rinehart took out second place with $13.8 billion, followed by property tycoons Harry Triguboff with $13.5 billion and Hui Wing Mau on $10.3 billion.

Atlassian co-founders Scott Farquhar and Mike Cannon-Brookes took out the fifth and six spots with fortunes of $9.75 billion and $9.63 billion respectively.

This year, the coveted “10-digit club” — people with wealth of more than $10 billion — has expanded to four members to include new member, Shimao Group chairman Hui Wing Mau.

Atlassian co-founders Scott Farquhar and Mike Cannon-Brookes are Australia’s fifth and sixth-wealthiest people. Picture: Harold David

The 200 Aussies on the list now have a combined wealth of more than $330 billion, up from $282 billion last year.

“The Financial Review Rich List is the most longstanding, credible and comprehensive stocktake of the nation’s most affluent wealth creators,” Financial Review editor-in-chief Michael Stutchbury said this week.

“It’s the biggest exercise in business journalism in the country, and this year we’ve made it bigger by revealing the 50 people who almost made the list of Australia’s richest 200 people.”

MYSTERY BILLIONAIRE

Australia’s “mystery billionaire” Vivek Seghal has also made it on the list this year, thanks to his $5.5 billion fortune.

Not much is known about Mr Seghal, but we do know he is an Indian-born manufacturer who obtained citizenship in 1996.

He founded India’s largest car parts manufacturer, Motherson Sumi, and last year he was placed ninth on the list, with former Rich List editor John Stensholt touching on the mystery surrounding the tycoon.

“Less clear is the rationale for his Australian citizenship,” Mr Stensholt wrote in 2018. “Though some clues can be gleaned from records lodged with corporate regulators in Australia and abroad.

“Paperwork lodged with the Securities and Exchange Commission several years ago lists Australian as Mr Sehgal’s nationality, while documents for a fundraising in India led by the local office of JPMorgan confirm that not only is Mr Sehgal an Australian citizen, but he also ‘does not have an Indian-voter identification card’.”

AUSSIE DEBUTANTS

The Rich List has 17 new entrants this year, including the Greensill brothers, Zeljko Ranogajec, a gambling partner of MONA founder David Walsh who is worth $600 million, and skip bin billionaire Ian Malouf.

Mr Malouf, who was placed 159th, founded Dial A Dump in the 1980s, and it was sold to Bingo Industries for $500 million earlier this year.

New parents Kayla Itsines and Tobi Pearce have made their Rich List debut. Picture: Supplied

Other debutants include Collis and Cyan Ta’eed, who founded digital assets marketplace Envato, Nick Molnar and Anthony Eisen from Afterpay and fitness power couple Kayla Itsines and Tobias Pearce who created the workout app Sweat.

Continue the conversation @carey_alexis | [e-mail]