10 Youngest Billionaires in the World

According to Forbes, there are currently 2,755 billionaires in the world. Of those billionaires, nearly a dozen of them are under 30. The youngest billionaire in 2021 is currently still a teenager and the heir to a German drugstore chain. Most of the young billionaires on this list have inherited their wealth, while a few of them are completely self-made and are the founders of multi-billion dollar companies.

10. Jonathan Kwok (c.1992 – Present)

photo source: egh.com.hk

Jonathan Kwok is the youngest son of the late Walter Kwok, the former chairman and CEO of Sun Hung Kai Properties. The company was founded by Jonathan Kwok’s grandfather. In 2008, Walter Kwok was ousted from Sun Hung Kai following a feud with his brothers, Thomas and Raymond. Walter Kwok then founded Empire Group Holdings, a property developer. Following Walter Kwok’s death in 2018, Jonathan Kwok and his brother Gregory inherited Empire Holdings and they now run the company together.

Jonathan Kwok and his brother also inherited their father’s stake in Sun Hung Kai Properties. Currently, Kwok is a director at Empire Group Holdings, where he oversees the company’s real estate investments, project developments and asset management operations. Before joining the family company, Kwok worked at listed property investor CSI Properties, and as a trading desk analyst at CMB International Securities.

Did You Know?

The Kwok Family is one of the richest families in Asia, with an estimated net worth of $45 billion.

---

9. Sam Bankman-Fried (March 6, 1992 – Present)

photo source: Fortune

 

Sam Bankman-Fried is another rare self-made billionaire, who is the co-founder of FTX, a cryptocurrency exchange platform. Bankman-Fried, who the son of law professors, was always a gifted child, who took an early interest in utilitarianism and effective altruism. In 2014, Bankman-Fried graduated from MIT with a degree in physics.

Bankman-Fried started his career at Jane Street Capital, a proprietary trading firm. He quit in 2017 and briefly worked as the director of the Centre for Effective Altruism. A year later, Bankman-Fried began dabbling in cryptocurrency. In 2019, Bankman-Fried founded FTX. He also manages assets through Alameda Research, a quantitative cryptocurrency trading firm he founded in October 2017.

Did You Know?

Sam Bankman-Fried believes in earning money to give it away. He is a supporter of effective altruism and pursues earning to give as an altruistic career. Bankman-Fried plans to give away most of his fortune to effective charities over the course of his life.

---

8. Stanley Tang (c.1992 – Present)

photo source: Forbes

Stanley Tang, who is originally from Hong Kong, is one of the co-founders of DoorDash, along with Andy Fang, who is on this list as well, and Tondy Xu. The trio were still students at Stanford University when they developed DoorDash, which was originally called Palo Alto Delivery. They developed the app for small business owners in the area after a a macaroon store owner asked for help using technology for deliveries.

Like Fang, Tang did not drop out of Stanford, despite DoorDash’s early success. Fang also earned a Computer Science degree. Currently, Tang is the Chief Product Officer at DoorDash.

Did You Know?

At the age of 14, Stanley Tang became an Amazon best selling author with his book eMillions.

---

7. Andy Fang (c.1992 – Present)

photo source: CNBC

Andy Fang is one of the co-founders of DoorDash, along with Stanley Tang, who is also on this list and Tony Xu. According to Forbes, Fang is currently worth $1.9 billion. Fang serves as DoorDash’s head of consumer engineering.

Fang, Tang, and Xu founded DoorDash back in 2013 while they were attending Stanford University. Fang earned a bachelor’s degree in Computer Science from the school in 2014. According to a profile by Fang’s high school alma mater, Fan has always been interested in science and technology.

Did You Know?

Andy Fang owns about a 4% stake in DoorDash, which listed its shares on the New York Stock Exchange in early December 2020.

---

6. Gustav Magnar Witzøe (February 8, 1993 – Present)

photo source: Forbes

Gustav Magnar Witzøe is yet another young heir to a multi-billion dollar fortune. In 2013, Witzøe was gifted a stake for nearly half of SalMar ASA, the Norwegian salmon producer his father founded in 1991. SalMar is the world’s largest producer of farmed salmon, which is why the Witzøe family is so wealthy.

While Witzøe has inherited a lot of money, he has not squandered it. He has earned a reputation for being an angel investor in the information and technology sector and invests in startups and real estate. Witzøe has backed startups like Gobi, a Snapchat challenger developed by students, and Keybutler, an app that helps Airbnb hosts. Currently, Witzøe says that he is not sure if he would like to take over the family’s salmon business.

Did You Know?

Gustav Magnar Witzøe works as a model and is signed to Norway’s Team Models.

---

5. Austin Russell (c.1995 – Present)

photo source: Entrepreneur Magazine

 

As the founder of Luminar Techologies, Austin Russell is one of the few self-made billionaires on this list. In 2012, Russell dropped out of Standford to start Luminar after receiving a $100,000 grant from Peter Thiel, co-founder of Paypal. Luminar is a technology company that develops vision-based Lidar and machine perception technologies, primarily for self-driving cars. Lidar are the sensors that help self-driving cars “see.”

Russell has always been a wunderkind. Instead of going to high school, he spent his teen years at the University of California at the Irvine Beckman Laser Institute. Russell’s work with Luminar has garnered him partnerships with Volvo Cars, Daimler, and Intel’s Mobileye. From 2017 to 2020, Luminar partnered with more than 50 companies total, including 12 of the 15 largest car companies in the world.

Did You Know?

When Austin Russell was just 13 years old, he filed his first patent: a groundwater recycling system that collects water from sprinklers and saves it to reduce wastewater.

---

4. Katharina Andresen (May 21, 1995 – Present)

photo source: 

Katharina Andresen is the older sister of Alexandra and together they are the youngest billionaire siblings in the world. Both Andresen sisters were given a 42% of the family-owned investment company Ferd. Currently, their father, Jonah, still runs the company and he says that he will not force his daughters to take over the company if they do not wish to.

However, Andresen appears likely to follow in her father’s footsteps. She eportedly studied social sciences at the Amsterdam University College and interned with Ernst & Young. Currently, Andresen works as a marketing coordinator at Norwegian sporting goods company Brav, which is owned by her family’s investment company.

Did You Know?

In 2017, Katharina Andresen was handed a NOK250,000 (about $30,600) fine by an Oslo court for driving under the influence.

---

3. Alexandra Andresen (July 23, 1996 – Present)

photo source: Forbes

Back in 2016, Alexandra Andresen made international headlines when she became the youngest billionaire in the world at the age of 19. Andresen and her older sister Katharina, who is also on this list, each inherited 42% of the family-owned investment company Ferd. Their father, Jonah Andresen still runs Ferd, which runs hedge funds, is an active investor on the Nordic stock exchange, and has private equity investments.

Despite being born with a tremendous amount of wealth, Andresen was raised very humbly and taught by her parents to not live too extravagantly. Andresen grew up riding horses and has won several dressage competitions. According to Andresen, her wealth does pay for her dressage career.

Did You Know?

Alexandra Andresen says that she is quite frugal and that she likes to save her money. She often saves her weekly allowance, her cash prizes from her dressage competitions, and any money she gets as a birthday gift.

---

2. Wang Zelong (c.1996 – Present)

photo source: nairametrics.com

Wang Zelong is another mysterious young billionaire, who inherited their fortune. According to Forbes, Zelong is currently worth $2 billion. Zelong inherited a stake in CNNC Hua Yuan Titanium Dioxide Co., which produces titanium dioxide pigment. The white pigment is used in a variety of products, including coatings, plastics, ink, and other materials.

Did You Know?

CNNC Huayuan Titanium Dioxide Co. Ltd. is the second largest producer of this pigment class in China with sites in Gansu and Anhui provinces.

---

1. Kevin David Lehmann (September 2002 – Present)

photo source: Wikimedia Commons

Kevin David Lehmann recently turned 19 years old, making him the youngest billionaire in the world. Lehmann is not a self-made billionaire; instead, he inherited his wealth from his father, Guenther Lehmann, when he transferred his 50% stake in Germany’s leading drugstore chain, dm (drogerie markt) to Kevin David.

Very little is know about the Lehmann family as they remain out of the spotlight despite their immense wealth. What is known, is that Guenther Lehmann first invested in dm back in 1974 when he was running his family’s Pfannkuch grocery chain. Despite owning such a large stake in dm, neither Kevin David or his father are involved with the chain’s operations.

Did You Know?

As Germany’s leading drugstore chain, drogerie markt brings in over $12 billion in annual revenue, which explains why Kevin David Lehmann is so wealthy.