The Richest People in New Zealand: The 2026 NBR Rich List
The 2026 NBR Rich List names 26 billionaires worth a combined $129 billion. Here are the richest people in New Zealand and how they made their money.
New Zealand's wealthiest people are now worth a combined NZ$129 billion, up from $102 billion a year earlier, according to the 2026 National Business Review Rich List. The number of billionaires jumped from 18 to 26, driven by a surge in technology fortunes. Here is who sits at the top, how they made their money, and how the shape of New Zealand wealth is changing. Many are also among the country's most famous entrepreneurs.
The 10 Richest People in New Zealand
| Rank | Name | Wealth built on |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Nick & Mat Mowbray | Zuru (toys and consumer goods) |
| 2 | Graeme Hart | Rank Group (global packaging) |
| 3 | Sir Peter Beck | Rocket Lab (space launch) |
| 4 | Goodman family | Property investment |
| 5 | Todd family | Energy and investment |
| 6 | Sir Peter Jackson & Dame Fran Walsh | Filmmaking |
| 7 | Sir Michael Friedlander | Property |
| 8 | Sir Rod Drury | Xero (accounting software) |
| 9 | Talley family | Food and fishing |
| 10 | Peter Cooper | Property development |
The NBR figures are estimates, built from public filings, property records and industry knowledge, so treat the exact numbers as informed approximations rather than audited accounts.
1. Nick and Mat Mowbray, Zuru
The brothers built the toy and consumer-goods company Zuru from a small operation started in 2003 into a group valued at around NZ$20 billion, the biggest fortune on the 2026 list. Zuru designs from Auckland and manufactures at scale offshore, with brands spanning toys, nappies, cleaning and personal care.
Standout: Their combined fortune of about NZ$20 billion is the largest on the 2026 Rich List.
2. Graeme Hart, Rank Group
A Mount Roskill school-leaver who once drove a tow truck, Hart used leveraged buyouts to assemble a packaging empire spanning North America, Europe and Asia. At an estimated NZ$14.1 billion he is the richest individual New Zealander, and in 2025 he sold his controlling stake in Pactiv Evergreen to the United States group Novolex.
Standout: Held the number one spot on the Rich List for more than a decade before the Mowbrays overtook him.
3. Sir Peter Beck, Rocket Lab
The self-taught engineer from Invercargill founded Rocket Lab in 2006 and took it public on the Nasdaq, turning a New Zealand aerospace start-up into a launch company serving NASA and commercial satellite operators.
Standout: His fortune recorded the single biggest jump on the 2026 list, rising from about NZ$650 million to roughly NZ$11 billion in a year.
4. The Goodman family, Property investment
The Goodman name is one of New Zealand's enduring property fortunes, long associated with commercial and industrial property investment.
Standout: One of the property fortunes that anchored the Rich List for decades before the tech wave.
5. The Todd family, Energy and investment
The Todds are one of New Zealand's oldest business dynasties, with interests spanning energy, property and investment held quietly across generations.
Standout: A family business with roots reaching back to the 1880s.
6. Sir Peter Jackson and Dame Fran Walsh, Filmmaking
The filmmaking partners behind The Lord of the Rings built Wellington's Weta group into a world-leading effects and production base, and remain the wealthiest New Zealanders in film.
Standout: Their Lord of the Rings and Hobbit films rank among the highest-grossing ever made.
7. Sir Michael Friedlander, Property
Through Samson Corporation, Friedlander built one of Auckland's substantial private property portfolios over decades.
Standout: One of Auckland's most established private property owners.
8. Sir Rod Drury, Xero
Drury founded the cloud accounting company Xero in 2006 and built it into one of New Zealand's most valuable listed companies, used by millions of small businesses around the world.
Standout: Knighted in the 2026 New Year Honours for services to business, technology and philanthropy.
9. The Talley family, Food and fishing
From a single Motueka fishing operation, the Talleys built a food and fishing empire spanning seafood, dairy and vegetables sold around the world.
Standout: The family food business was founded in Motueka in the 1930s and remains privately held.
10. Peter Cooper, Property development
The Auckland-born developer behind Cooper and Company led the restoration of the city's Britomart precinct and holds major property interests in both New Zealand and the United States.
Standout: His firm transformed Auckland's Britomart into a landmark commercial and hospitality quarter.
Old Money and New Money
For years the list was dominated by property and primary industry. The Goodman, Friedlander and Cooper fortunes were built on land and buildings, the Todd family made its money in energy and investment, and the Talleys built a food and fishing empire out of Nelson. That base of property, farming and food has not gone away, but it is no longer the whole story.
The change in 2026 is technology. Of the 19 people who debuted on the list, 11 made their money in technology and services, a category that more than doubled in value to almost NZ$32 billion. Alongside Beck, newcomers include Craig Piggott, whose agritech company Halter was valued at around NZ$3.4 billion, and Paul Copplestone, co-founder of the database company Supabase, valued at about US$10 billion. Anna Mowbray, who helped grow Zuru, appears on the list in her own right.
How the Rich List Is Changing
The headline is not just that the wealthy are wealthier, though the combined total has grown from NZ$5.3 billion when the list launched 40 years ago to $129 billion today. It is where the money now comes from. New Zealand is starting to mint fortunes the way larger economies do, out of software, space and scalable technology, rather than only land and livestock. That shift says something about the businesses being built here now, from young founders just getting started to companies selling to the world from day one.
For the flip side of that story, our look at New Zealand's quiet billionaires covers the Kiwis who made their fortunes almost entirely offshore.
Who Is the Richest Person in New Zealand?
Brothers Nick and Mat Mowbray top the 2026 list with a combined fortune of about NZ$20 billion, built on their toy and consumer-goods company Zuru. Measured as a single individual, Graeme Hart remains the richest New Zealander at an estimated NZ$14.1 billion.
How Many Billionaires Are in New Zealand?
The 2026 NBR Rich List counts 26 billionaires, up from 18 a year earlier, worth a combined NZ$129 billion. The increase was driven mainly by a surge in technology fortunes.
Who Is the Richest Self-Made New Zealander?
Graeme Hart, who left school at Mount Roskill and started out driving a tow truck before building a global packaging empire through leveraged buyouts, is widely regarded as the richest self-made New Zealander.
How Is the NBR Rich List Compiled?
The National Business Review builds its estimates from public filings, property records and industry knowledge, so the figures are informed approximations rather than audited accounts.
Last reviewed July 2026. Rankings and figures draw on the 2026 National Business Review Rich List and companies' own public announcements. Spotted something out of date? Tell us and we will fix it.
