Fintech AUS BNPL pioneer and billionaire, Nick Molnar

Name: Nick Molnar

Job title: Co-CEO

Company: Postpayment

A bold email to a global CEO and sheer determination has seen Afterpay boss Nick Molner become Australia’s youngest billionaire. Nick Molnar was born in 1990 in Sydney, Australia, and achieved billionaire status at the age of just 30 when his BNPL company, Afterpay, peaked when it sold to Square for $ 29 billion.

Afterpay was founded in 2014 by Molner and his neighbor, investor Anthony Eisen.

But this significant event was thwarted by Molner’s natural entrepreneurial flair for business opportunities – a trait encouraged by his father, Ron Milner.

As a young business student at the University of Sydney, Nick Molnar began his business journey by selling jewelry on eBay during his student years. He discovered that he had a talent for changing goods quickly and also benefited from his relatively early entry into the platform, just as it was at the top in terms of popularity.

In fact, Molnar actually sold the most jewelry by any supplier on eBay in Australia, but despite the success, he still longed for a career in the financial world because he did not see the supplier success as a “real career”.

A long road to success

But despite his keen business instincts, Nick Molnar struggled to break into the tough investment labor market. In the end, it was actually a combination of his father’s belief in his ability – and his friend and soon business partner Anthony Eisen – that helped him get his first break.

According to reports, co-founder Eisen, an accountant by education, was about to put out the trash cans one night when he met Ron Molner at the end of the driveway. Ron Molner suggested that Eisen give career advice to his son because he was worried about the long hours Nick spent very late at night selling his jewelry on eBay.

Eisen said he wanted to help – and as good as his words, Nick Molnar got an interview with investment banker Mark Carnegie from MH Carnegie & Co.

But instead of offering him a job, Carnegie heard Molner’s predicament and unexpectedly encouraged him to see how far he could go in the jewelry business.

The move prompted him to seek out an online goldsmith offshore, and in an unorthodox move, he found out the email to the CEO of one of the largest goldsmiths in the United States and sent him an email.

Take the chance

Molnar, who now talks regularly with young entrepreneurs in the lecture circle, said that the e-mail went something like this: ” Hi Shmuel, Sorry about the cold e-mail. For one thing or another, my name is Nick Molnar, I’m a 21 year old entrepreneur, and I currently sell most jewelry on eBay in Australia out of my bedroom. I’m coming to Las Vegas next week for the jewelry conference, and if you’re there too, I’d love to meet for a coffee. Sincerely, Nick ”

The gambling paid off and the CEO agreed to meet him. However, Molnar had to book a flight to the United States first and reorganize the confirmation, which was to take place at the same time.

The first major corporate launch

As a result of the last-minute meeting, Molnar experienced its first major breakthrough in large-scale operations. He went on to launch the Australian version of the leading American online jeweler, Ice.com, under the local brand Iceonline.com.au. The event was the catalyst that gave him the confidence and the means to later launch Afterpay.

Just seven years later, in August 2021, Afterpay sold Block (formerly known as Square) for a record $ 29 billion. The agreement was completed on 31 January this year.

A family man

Molnar is also an avid sports fan. He was a semi-professional rugby player in Australia and is now an avid skier. He married his longtime girlfriend Gabrielle in 2016 and the couple has two children, the first of whom, a daughter, was born in 2018. The family currently lives in San Francisco.