Jan Koum
Source of wealth: WhatsApp
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The scale of their wealth
Health
The price of life
Let's compare Jan Koum's fortune with the healthcare spending of a massive country
Jan Koum could fund the entire healthcare system of DR Congo, with a population of over 105,800,000 people, for approximately 7.6 years.
But even if we compare their fortune with that of a rich country
On the other end, Jan Koum could cover the healthcare spending of Luxembourg, considered the most heavily funded healthcare system in the world, for 3.4 years.
Education
Buying the future
Let's also compare their fortune with education spending, first with a poor country
Jan Koum could cover the total cost of Nigeria's education system, the most populous country in Africa with over 243,000,000 inhabitants, for 5.0 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 Jan Koum could pay for it entirely for 6.8 years.
Research
The monopoly on progress
Coming full circle, we think it's also interesting to add another gigantic country
Jan Koum could fully fund the state research budget of Pakistan, the fifth most populous country in the world with over 260,000,000 inhabitants, for 28.6 years.
And of course, the country that invests the most per capita worldwide
But even if we compare the total wealth of Jan Koum 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 0.6 years.
Gold
Everyday luxuries
Jan Koum's fortune is equivalent to 116 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.
Jan Koum could buy 31,022,760 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 6 trucks to transport them. Although Jan Koum will almost certainly have enough money left over to pay for the gas.
Biography
Jan Koum cofounded WhatsApp, now the world's biggest mobile messaging service, in 2009.
Facebook bought the startup for $22 billion in cash and stock in 2014.
He resigned as CEO of WhatsApp in 2018 and announced he would leave Facebook's board as well.
Koum worked at Yahoo for nearly nine years before leaving to found WhatsApp.
Now, he invests through his firm Newlands, which holds nearly 10 million shares of Facebook's parent company Meta and is building a portfolio of startups.
Financial Assets
Monthly wealth history
Fortune comparison
Historical data not available for comparison