Catherine Phillips
Source of wealth: investments
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The scale of their wealth
Health
The price of life
Let's compare Catherine Phillips's fortune with the healthcare spending of a massive country
Catherine Phillips could fund the entire healthcare system of DR Congo, with a population of over 105,800,000 people, for approximately 0.7 years.
But even if we compare their fortune with that of a rich country
On the other end, Catherine Phillips could cover the healthcare spending of Luxembourg, considered the most heavily funded healthcare system in the world, for 0.3 years.
Education
Buying the future
Let's also compare their fortune with education spending, first with a poor country
Catherine Phillips could cover the total cost of Nigeria's education system, the most populous country in Africa with over 243,000,000 inhabitants, for 0.5 years.
And yes, we can also compare it with a rich country
But they couldn't just cover the cost of a poor country; Luxembourg is considered the country with the highest per capita investment in education in the world, and Catherine Phillips could pay for it entirely for 0.6 years.
Research
The monopoly on progress
Coming full circle, we think it's also interesting to add another gigantic country
Catherine Phillips could fully fund the state research budget of Pakistan, the fifth most populous country in the world with over 260,000,000 inhabitants, for 2.7 years.
And of course, the country that invests the most per capita worldwide
But even if we compare the total wealth of Catherine Phillips with Israel, the country that invests the most per capita in research in the world, they could cover the total cost of the system for 0.1 years.
Gold
Everyday luxuries
Catherine Phillips's fortune is equivalent to 11 tons of gold. It's hard to process, since we don't usually keep a handful of gold bars in our piggy banks.
A standard gold ring usually weighs between 4 and 7 grams. Let's say this one weighs 5 grams. It's usually 18 karats.
Based on today's gold price (excluding the jeweler's commission, shipping, or anything else), that ring would be worth $546.86.
Catherine Phillips could buy 2,879,649 gold rings. That's a lot of fingers and way too many gifts!!
And if you're struggling to visualize that many rings, it would take 1 trucks to transport them. Although Catherine Phillips will almost certainly have enough money left over to pay for the gas.
Biography
Catherine Phillips and her husband John Phillips were early investors in Canadian e-commerce firm Shopify.
The couple owns an estimated 2% of Shopify combined.
Now retired, Catherine worked as a psychologist specializing in helping cancer patients deal with stress.
She leads support groups and in 2013 published a book titled, Calm Your Mind, Warm Your Heart.
Her husband served on Shopify's board of directors from 2010 to 2023.
The Phillips' Northpine Foundation has donated hundreds of millions to organizations focused on climate, refugees and formerly incarcerated individuals.
Financial Assets
Monthly wealth history
Fortune comparison
Historical data not available for comparison