Melanie Perkins, 34, the co-founder and CEO of Canva, has been named Australia’s youngest billionaire.
Canva, a visual design platform, is valued at $15 billion, putting Melanie Perkins, Cliff Obrecht, and Cameron Adams, the company’s primary shareholders and co-founders, in a position of great wealth.
Melanie has gotten a lot of press not only as the face of Canva, but also as an inspiring female business leader at the helm of one of the few profitable unicorns.
Of course, she’s part Filipino through her paternal grandmother, which is a wonderful fact to know.
Melanie was born in Australia to an Australian mother and a Malaysian father (both of whom are of Sri Lankan origin), so it’s no surprise that the firm she started has gone global, with one of its lead offices located here in Metro Manila.
Melanie Perkins, a billionaire and businesswoman, is profiled in this article.
1| She is married to Cliff Obrecht, a co-founder of Canva.
In January 2021, co-founders Perkins and Obrecht married in Australia’s Rottnest Island. Obrecht has supported Perkins since her first firm, Fusion Books, a yearbook publisher, and the two have been dating since they were teenagers.
2| The combined net worth of Perkins and Obrecht is $6.18 billion.
The two have a combined net worth of $6.18 billion as a result of their marriage and Canva’s most recent fundraising round. Despite the fact that Canva has gone through 13 rounds of fundraising, the founders have managed to retain ownership of the company, which is still privately held. The two are now among Australia’s top ten wealthiest people, ranking with Australia’s mining, mall, and media magnates.
Except for Manny Villar ($7 billion), the pair is already worth more than every billionaire in the Philippines.
3| The couple want to establish a foundation using the proceeds of their vast fortune.
Obrecht proposed to Perkins in Turkey with a 30-dollar ring.
It’s evident that these billionaires don’t care about money or prestige.
They’re even considering forming a foundation to manage all of their donations and contributions to topics like climate change and global wealth disparity.
“It’s not our vibe to hoard money,” Obrecht explained.
4| Their employees are also entitled to a portion of Canva’s huge worth.
Melanie and Cliff also give their staff a sizable piece of the Canva pie as the company’s value rises. Canva employees have a stock option that allows them to participate in a stock plan that accounts for around 5% of the company’s total ownership. With Canva’s current market capitalization of $15 billion, 5% represents about $750 million. Let’s talk about employee benefits.
5| Perkins’ second business venture is Canva.
Fusion Books, Perkins’ initial company, is now one of Australia’s leading yearbook publishers. Perkins and Obrecht began their relationship in her mother’s living room in Australia when they were both 19 years old.
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