In 2010, Eliot Crowther was working as a door-to-door salesman. But he had a bright idea that would go on to make him more than $100 million.
Together with a friend who attended the same Auckland church, Chris Heaslip, he decided there had to be a more modern way for his congregation to make regular donations.
The pair went on to found Pushpay, a software-as-a-service company that is now listed on both the NZX and ASX, and has a market capitalisation of nearly $1 billion.
What began as three staff operating above a gym in Glenfield, quickly grew into a company that now has more than 100 staff in New Zealand, and nearly 300 in the US.
The company’s path to success hasn’t always been smooth. According to investor Aaron Bhatnagar, in late 2013 the company almost went broke and was rescued by another NBR Rich Lister, Peter Huljich, who is now on the board.
Crowther relocated to the US in 2014, which is where Pushpay is now based. However, he abruptly severed his ties with the company last year. He announced he was resigning as an executive director on the same day it was revealed he had sold his entire shareholding for more than $100m.
The June sale included $14m of stock transferred by the Crowther Family Trust to the MSix20 Foundation, a Seattle-based charity controlled by Crowther, and $5.6m transferred to The Seattle Foundation, a philanthropic support organisation.
At the time, Crowther told NBR he had a “significant personal situation” to deal with, and told investors he needed to focus on his family. It was later revealed his marriage had collapsed in 2016.
News of his payday from PushPay triggered legal action by his former wife, who claimed he had misled her about the value of their shares during their divorce proceedings. The case was settled out of court.
His ex-wife, who is an architect and, like Crowther, a former competitive cyclist, remarried in 2018.
2018: $110 million