Adelaide developer Ross Makris tops Australia's young rich list with $420m fortune

ADELAIDE property developer Ross Makris has topped the BRW Young Rich list, with a $420m fortune at the age of 39.

Ross Makris: "A lot of Australians are suffering from the global financial crisis and I really do not want to talk about money or my wealth."

THE global financial crisis, which hit property players hardest last year, has obviously left Ross Makris unscathed, with the 39-year-old Adelaide property developer jumping three places to become Australia's richest person in BRW's Young Rich list with a fortune of $420 million.

But Mr Makris does not want to talk about money - not during these turbulent times.

“A lot of Australians are suffering from the global financial crisis and I really do not want to talk about money or my wealth,” he said today.

Mr Makris learned the ropes of the building trade from his father, Con Makris, a property billionaire in his own right.

He then decided to strike out on his own to focus on shopping centres, commercial properties and residential projects.

“Ross Makris was nimble and fast to take advantage of the turbulent times, and he has done well,” said BRW editor in chief Sean Aylmer.

The country's richest woman (age 40 years and below) is Tania Austin, who made her fortune with her husband, Nigel Austin, founder of retail chain Cotton On, with over 500 stores in Australia, Asia and the US.

Her fortune is worth $88m, ahead of actress Cate Blanchett at No 2 with $53m.

In all, the 100 wealthiest young Australians on the list amassed a total fortune of $5.8 billion - down 4.5 per cent from last year.