Every year FORBES crunches the net worth of each American billionaire to see who can claim the privilege of making the exclusive FORBES 400 list. But you might say 20 members of this club are luckier than the rest: they have the money -- plus many, many years to spend it.
This year there are 20 American billionaires under the age of 45. The youngest member is Dustin Moskovitz. The 29-year-old
Facebook
cofounder has been the youngest billionaire in the country since he first appeared on the list in 2010. This year his net worth has nearly doubled to $5.3 billion, thanks to his 5% stake in the ubiquitous social network.
Mark Zuckerberg, the Facebook CEO, comes in as the second-youngest FORBES 400 member, just 8 days older than his former Harvard roommate Moskovitz. Zuckerberg, however, has nearly 3 times as large of a fortune. His estimated net worth is $19 billion, up from $9.4 billion last year as the stock returned to its IPO heights. That's good enough for him to rank as the 20th wealthiest person in the country.
Even beyond the
Facebook
duo, Silicon Vally dominates the youngest billionaire ranks. Napster cofounder and former Facebook CEO Sean Parker is 33, while Twitter cofounder and Square CEO Jack Dorsey is 36. "Thrillionaire" founder of fast-growing camera company GoPro, Nick Woodman, is just 38. And wireless network entrepreneur Robert Pera, 35, joined the 400 list for the first time this year on the back of his
Ubiquiti Networks
.
Meanwhile, you can't forget about the
Google
guys, Sergey Brin and Larry Page. The 40-year-old cofounders have a combined net worth just shy of $50 billion, which would be the 3rd-largest fortune in the United States (behind only Bill Gates and Warren Buffett) if it weren't split between the pair. Forty-two-year-old Elon Musk also sits among the youngest and wealthiest. The Tesla CEO's net worth jumped to $6.7 billion this year, up from $2.4 billion last time; in percentage terms he was the second biggest gainer of the year.
But you don't have to be a tech maven to make this list.
Under Armour
founder and CEO Kevin Plank, 41, carries the flag for more traditional retail businesses. Meanwhile, Chase Coleman (38), John Arnold (39), David Einhorn (44), and Ken Griffin (44) prove that hedge fund whiz kids know how to amass a fortune quickly. Worth noting: Arnold retired last year to focus on philanthropy. That's not a privilege most people earn before they hit 40 years old.
Also, Milane Frantz is the only women among the youngest 20. Frantz, 44, was one of four heirs (including her younger brother Scott Duncan) of Dan Duncan's energy pipeline fortune after he passed away in 2010.
See the whole list of youngest billionaires on the FORBES 400 here.
Follow Brian on Facebook and Twitter.
