Fil-Am tech businessman is world's newest billionaire

MANILA, Philippines — Bobby Murphy, the Filipino-American co-founder of popular app Snapchat, entered this year's Forbes list of world billionaires.

The 26-year-old, Stanford-educated Murphy has a net worth of $1.5 billion, making him the second youngest dollar billionaire in the club, Forbes reported.

Along with his 24-year-old fraternity brother Evan Spiegel, Murphy released Snapchat under the name "Picaboo" in 2011 for iOS and Android as a project for one of their classes in the university.

The two turned down a $3-billion buyout offer from Facebook in 2013, and the app now has a value of $19 billion.

Forbes said Murphy has a stake of at least 15 percent in Snapchat.

RELATED: Fil-Am tech businessman is world's newest billionaire

Murphy is a son of government employees, and his mother emigrated from the Philippines. He grew up in Berkeley, California.

Snapchat's first employee, David Kravitz, earlier told Forbes that Murphy is a gentle soul who is "almost like a monk."

"I don't think I've ever seen him upset," Kravitz said.

TIME Magazine named Murphy and Spiegel among the world's 100 most influential people in 2014. - Camille Diola