William Hockey Net Worth

William Hockey has an estimated net worth of $3.3 billion, according to Forbes Real-Time Billionaires, William Hockey profile (figures as of October 20, 2026). That is up from $1.4 billion in 2022.

William Hockey is an American entrepreneur known for helping build financial technology tools. In 2012, he cofounded Plaid, a payments company that lets other fintech businesses connect to customers' bank accounts. He met cofounder Zach Perret while both were junior consultants at Bain & Company. Plaid became a key part of the fintech world by giving other companies the rails to build financial products on top of existing bank data.

His wealth comes from fintech ownership. Hockey stepped down as Plaid's chief technology officer in 2019, but he stayed on the board. In 2022, he launched Column, a chartered bank in San Francisco that helps companies including Mercury and Brex offer banking services. He self-funded Column and owns the vast majority of it. Forbes put his net worth at $3.3 billion on its real-time billionaires tracker as of October 20, 2026.

How William Hockey built his fortune

Hockey made his name by starting Plaid in 2012 with Zach Perret. The company helps fintech firms link their apps and services to customers' bank accounts, which made it useful to a wide range of financial startups. That role in the fintech stack turned Plaid into an important business. Even after leaving his day-to-day job as chief technology officer in 2019, he remained connected to the company as a board member.

A second piece of his wealth comes from Column, which he launched in 2022. Column is a chartered bank based in San Francisco that helps other businesses offer banking services. Companies named in that work include Mercury and Brex. Forbes says Hockey self-funded Column and owns the vast majority of it, giving him a large personal stake in the bank's value as it serves fintech customers.

Forbes net worth over time

Forbes estimated Hockey's fortune at $1.4 billion on the 2022 World's Billionaires List. That valuation came after he had already built Plaid into a well-known fintech company and moved on to start Column. His money story is tied to ownership, not a long list of unrelated businesses. The main drivers named by Forbes are his stakes in Plaid and in Column, the bank he funded himself.

By 2026, Forbes estimated his net worth at $3.3 billion on the World's Billionaires List. The current Forbes real-time tracker also showed $3.3 billion in October 2026. The increase lines up with his continued position on Plaid's board and his large ownership in Column. Since Forbes says he owns the vast majority of Column, that company plays a central role in how his wealth is measured today.