Just because the BRW Rich List for 2013 has only one Canberran on the list does not mean there is only one person from the ACT worth more than $235 million, according to the man who helps compile the list.
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Terry Snow has again been named the sole Canberra entrant on the list of Australia’s richest 200 people, coming in at 69th on the list with an estimated worth of $680 million.
But BRW Rich Lists editor Andrew Heathcote said Canberra could easily be home to more of Australia’s most wealthy who choose to live quietly in the bush capital.
“I think it’s fair to say that only having one Canberran on the list is a really interesting aspect of our list, and I do agree with the idea that it’s possible that there are more out there,” Mr Heathcote said.
“I know it’s one city where it is particularly hard to uncover some of the very wealthy people who live there.”
Mr Heathcote said the fact that the ACT isn’t traditionally associated with any of the fast-growing industries in Australia meant it was difficult to pinpoint people quickly rising above the $235 million cut off for this year’s list.
“I’m not sure it’s a place you go to when you want to live a traditional billionaire’s lifestyle. So I think perhaps some of the very wealthy people in Canberra, whether they are near the cut-off or not, are perhaps quite content to fly under the radar.
“We can’t ever rule out the idea that there might be a few secretly keeping their heads down and trying to maintain as low as profile as possible.”
Mr Snow has been the ACT’s stalwart on the rich list since 2006, when he re-entered the top 200 with an estimated net wealth of about $560 million. Since then, his wealth hit a peak of $933 million in 2011, before dropping back to $675 million last year.
BRW attributes the bulk of his success to the canny decision to purchase Canberra Airport for $65 million back in 1998. This year the airport unveiled a brand new terminal as part of a $420 million upgrade, and has pushed to become the secondary airport for Sydney.
“He’s done well on the back of the development of Canberra Airport,” Mr Heathcote said.
“He tends to be much more stable than some of the miners, who we’ve seen have some quite big falls this year. Someone like Snow has a much more stable net wealth than some of the other people on the list.”
Despite the variable fortunes of the mining industry, Gina Rinehart has retained her spot at the top of the rich list, although her net worth has dropped more than $7 billion to just over $22 billion this year.
Behind her at the number two spot is Frank Lowy, valued at $6.87 billion, followed by James Packer, with an estimated net wealth of $6 billion.
At the other end, one of the most notable departures from the list is Newcastle mining boss Nathan Tinkler, whose wealth fell below $235 million.
