‘Lambo guy’ Adrian Portelli named as one of the richest people in Australia: Here’s how he made his money

A self-made billionaire from Melbourne’s western suburbs has been named one of Australia’s richest people.

Businessman and luxury car enthusiast Adrian Portelli – aka ‘Lambo Guy’ has roared in at number 115 on The List – Australia’s richest 250 with an estimated fortune of $1.3 billion earned from his promotions company LMCT+.

The lottery company offers its members lavish prizes including luxury homes, cars and cash in monthly prize draws using a legal loophole.

Subscribers also get exclusive offers from over 1,000 partners, such as Beaurepaires, Patriot Campers and Prestige Autoworks.

It has about 100,000 customers who pay a monthly subscription.

LMCT+ operates as a ‘trade promotion’ – a type of lottery originally designed to help businesses attract customers by rewarding them with prizes – under a license issued in NSW.

Sir. Portelli has also appeared several times on the Channel Nine show The Block, where he buys homes to give away to his LMCT+ members.

Sir. Portelli’s $1.3 billion fortune has also been made from his assets, with the businessman having a particular fondness for fast cars and expensive property,

He made headlines last May after he used a crane to lift his $2 million Maclaren hypercar into his $39 million penthouse on Melbourne’s Southbank.

‘A first look at the McLaren Senna GTR 57 floors up. A huge thank you to everyone involved for making this absolutely surreal moment happen,’ he wrote online.

The Rich Lister has previously admitted he’s lost count of the number of rare limited-edition sports cars he owns – but reckons it’s less than 50.

The millionaire investor’s extensive property portfolio also includes Melbourne’s most expensive apartment – a $39 million penthouse in the city.

However, he insisted he only planned to use it as a ‘weekender’.

Despite his bold tastes, Mr. Portelli came from humble beginnings.

He dropped out of university to work in his father’s truck repair business before moving to Los Angeles to launch a celebrity limousine service.

While struggling to pay rent, he found a roommate online who helped him develop several successful apps that he later sold.

“I’m always humble because it wasn’t easy where I got to,” Portelli told the Australian Financial Review last October.

‘Every day I just woke up with the idea of ​​being successful. I was just engrossed in it. I was just a bit of a loner, mate, and used to motivating myself and just keep pushing.’

Earlier this year, Mr Portelli welcomed a baby boy with girlfriend Karlie Butler.

Mining billionaire Gina Rinehart topped the list of Australia’s richest people in 2024, followed by former mining couple Andrew and Nicola Forrest.

They were followed by Visy CEO Anthony Pratt, Meriton Hotels CEO Harry Truguboff, Atlassian’s Mike Cannon-Brookes and Scott Farrquhar, Clive Palmer, Kerry Stokes and Canvas’ Cliff Obrecht.

Also on the list for the first time is Edward Craven, Australia’s youngest billionaire.

The 28-year-old cryptocurrency investor is the co-founder of online casino website Stake.com and live streaming platform Kick.

Lithium mining entrepreneur Nick Wakim and Chemist Warehouse billionaires Jack and Sam Gance have also made the list for the first time in 2024.