Down $6b but Gina Rinehart remains richest Australian in BRW Rich 200

Sydney : Gina Rinehart’s wealth has taken a huge hit from a falling iron ore price, and may take a larger one following Thursday’s NSW Supreme Court decision to award control of her family’s $4 billion family trust to estranged daughter Bianca – though for now she maintains her position as Australia’s richest person on the BRW Rich 200 list.
Rinehart’s wealth has dropped $5.99 billion in the past year due to falling iron ore prices, but she still tops the 2015 edition of the Rich 200 with a $14.02 billion fortune, down from $20.01 billion a year ago. Even if her seemingly inevitable appeal against today’s court decision were unsuccessful, she would still be among the richest handful of Australians (although not if John and Bianca Rinehart are successful in separate Federal Court proceedings to double the children’s share in Hancock Prospecting) .Manufacturer Anthony Pratt, executive chairman of giant cardboard box maker and recycling company Visy, is second on the list at $10.76 billion. Pratt’s wealth rises from $7.64 billion in 2014 due to strong business conditions in the United States, where his Pratt Industries is the biggest Australian-owned employer.
Sydney property developer Harry Triguboff is third on the list with $10.23 billion, almost double the $5.5 billion mark of a year ago. Triguboff’s wealth is up significantly thanks to a strong property market and record sales for his Meriton units and serviced apartments business.
Westfield chairman Frank Lowy is fourth with $7.84 billion, comprised of his Westfield and Scentre Group shares and an extensive array of private investments owned by the Lowy Family Group.
Fifth position is occupied by Hong Kong-based Hui Wing Mau, chairman of Shimao Property Holdings. Hui earned an MBA at the University of South Australia in the early 1990s, gaining Australian citizenship before going to make his fortune in the fast-growing Shanghai and Beijing property markets.The top five are among a record 49 billionaires on the list, up from 39 a year ago. The billionaire ranks include three list debutants, all female. Sisters Leonie Baldock and Alexandra Burt are the highest-ranked newcomers, with a combined wealth of $1.7 billion. The Perth-based duo are the daughters of the late Michael Wright, the son of Michael Wright, one-time business partner of Rinehart’s late father Lang Hancock.
The other new billionaire is Judith Neilson, who is separated from husband and Platinum Asset Management founder Kerr Neilson. Her shares in Platinum, which she owns in her own right, comprise the bulk of her $1.55 billion wealth.
Baldock, Burt and Judith Neilson are among the 17 women on the list, up from 14 a year ago.
High-profile duo James Packer and Andrew Forrest are among the biggest falls in wealth on the list, due to the drop in share prices for Crown Resorts and Fortescue Metals Group respectively.
Packer is in 7th position with $6.08 billion wealth, down from third position and $7.19 billion in 2014. Forrest is 9th at $2.93 billion, compared with 7th position and $5.86 billion a year ago.
Average wealth for the 200 on the list reaches $974.7 billion, only marginally higher than $968 million in 2014 as the last falls for billionaires such as Rinehart, Packer and Forrest negate the large rises of the rest of the list. Total wealth is $195.9 billion, up 1.2 per cent from last year.
There are 19 debutants on the list, including technology entrepreneur Patrick Grove, who starts in position 200 with wealth of $286 million – a record cut-off amount for entry on the list.
Other notable newcomers include Young Rich List members Dave Greiner and Ben Richardson, the co-founders of software company Campaign Monitor, whose combined wealth is $500 million. Their company’s email marketing tool is used by big brands such as BuzzFeed, Coca-Cola and Airbnb and received $250 million in investment from New York firm Insight Venture Partners last year.