Here’s Johnny!: Meet the richest hipster in his twenties you’ve never heard of, who made a hundred million before his tech start-up went sour
He looks like any other bearded young hipster. But 29-year-old Johnny Boufarhat is probably the youngest billionaire you’ve never heard of. The company he founded – a virtual event platform called Hopin – was once the fastest-growing European start-up of all time.
It turned Boufarhat, who lives in Switzerland after cashing in £100 million worth of shares in 2021, into a tech tycoon. But the company’s meteoric rise now seems to be turning sour.
Hopin’s 2022 UK accounts are now more than four months overdue at Companies House, The Mail on Sunday can reveal. Accountants at EY have yet to sign the accounts due to delays.
In the beginning it was all so different. Australian-born Briton Boufarhat started his business in 2019 after an autoimmune disease left him bedridden.
In February 2020, the company had only six employees. But in extremely lucky timing for him, Hopin officially launched a few weeks later, just as Covid brought the world to a standstill. Investors loved companies like Zoom – and yes, Hopin.
Swiss watch: Johnny Boufarhat has now dumped Britain and taken his new found wealth to the land of low taxes
As Boufarhat put it, things went “crazy.” Wealthy venture capitalists jumped at the opportunity to invest and the company was soon valued at an astonishing £6.3 billion. Within 18 months, the group claimed to have five million customers ranging from the United Nations and NATO to Dell and even rap star MC Hammer.
But the shine wore off as the threat of Covid eased and many workers returned to their workplace.
According to Hopin, the reason for the delayed bills lies in the rapid expansion. A spokesperson said it needed more time to process the numbers as it had acquired new companies in 2021 and raised money in multiple rounds of funding.
The company says it is on track to file an application later this year. A spokesperson added: “The company continues to operate with positive cash flow.”
Hopin was forced to cut hundreds of jobs last year in rounds of layoffs to cut costs.
Several senior executives left the company, including chief operating officer Wei Gao. She was brought in after 16 years at Amazon, but stayed with her new bat for less than 12 months.
The exodus was in stark contrast to the hiring boom in 2021, when Boufarhat boasted that 80 percent of his day’s work was spent recruiting new people.
His move to sell £100m worth of shares coincided with him exchanging Britain for Switzerland as he took his new-found wealth to the land of low taxes – although a source close to him said his change of residency was not was due to money.
Zoom boom (and bust): Shares in Hopin’s rival soared during Covid, but have since fallen to the ground
Regardless of motive, the Manchester University graduate was recently reported by The Sunday Times Rich List as having a personal fortune of £1.7 billion, making him much wealthier than former Beatle Sir Paul McCartney.
While he’s come a long way since launching Hopin out of bed, the now-depleted appreciation can’t be ignored. Data platform, Beauhurst, estimates it could have dropped to £661 million.
Francesco Perticarari, a London-based VC technology investor, said: ‘Hopin has always been the product of hype.
“As an investor, I was amazed at how fast it grew. Stories like this should make us all think about what we want to support. I’m not sure it will even survive.’
Get out: Chief Operating Officer Wei Gao was brought in by Amazon, but stayed for less than a year
The scenario in Hopin – of a young founder who has amassed enormous personal wealth from a tech company that has seen its fortunes turned around – is one with broader resonance. The government is keen to plug the sector in as one of the keys to the UK’s prosperity.
Rivals like Zoom have also seen a significant drop in value. The US company’s share price peaked at $599 in October 2020, but has since fallen below $70.
Boufarhat’s once-active Twitter account hasn’t posted anything since last year.
However, he previously suggested a listing in New York because of what he described as the “strong negativity” surrounding the London market.
The rise and fall of Hopin is a cautionary tale that shows how billion-dollar technology companies fail to live up to their hype.
It also raises questions about short-sighted investors who paved the way for Boufarhat’s staggering wealth.
Hopin’s unofficial company motto was once hailed as “Let’s f***ing go.” The question now is: where to?