Jan Koum’s life story is fascinating. It takes you from the lows of his poverty-stricken childhood in Ukraine to his early days in California, where he worked as a grocery store janitor before teaching himself computer networking through manuals picked up at a used bookstore. The man who worked his way up one page at a time has been on a winning streak ever since.So much so that not only is he now ranked among the richest tech tycoons on the planet, he also commands an armada of superyachts and is now selling one of his vessels, Moonrise, a 328-foot yacht he took delivery of in 2020 for about $220 million. After using it for just five years, he is reportedly asking a staggering $395 million for Moonrise, a very hefty premium and an astronomical figure when you consider that Google co-founder Sergey Brin paid about $450 million for a brand-new Lürssen-built superyacht that is 466 feet long.
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According to The Yacht Report, Koum’s older Moonrise superyacht, a 328-foot Feadship, has been quietly listed for sale with Burgess. The billionaire WhatsApp founder, worth $17 billion, has already stepped into a larger Feadship of his own, also named Moonrise, now stretching 331 feet and valued at around $330 million. Not one to hoard superyachts, he has sensibly decided to part ways with his former vessel.
What makes this sale especially intriguing is that the predecessor hasn’t been marked down, as is typically the case with pre-owned luxury vessels. Instead, it appears to be flipping for a hefty premium. The 2020-built motoryacht is a stellar example of exceptional build quality and beauty, and the Koum effect has seemingly propelled its value to nearly double, an extremely rare fate for a pleasure craft.
The 3,900 GT ship flaunts an impressive exterior penned by Studio De Voogt, with a striking superstructure wrapped in glass. Inside, Rémi Tessier Design (Koum sued Tessier for allegedly filling his Malibu estates and superyachts with knockoffs and marking up prices) brings the yacht to life with high ceilings, flush decks, and eight stately suites that pair perfectly with her ultra-quiet performance. Koum, who is famously obsessive about flawless engineering and seamless functionality, gravitated toward Feadship largely because of this exact philosophy, the yard’s devotion to precision, silence, and mechanical perfection mirrors his own.
Just like the newest Moonrise, this Feadship is engineered for minimum noise levels. Quantum stabilizers allow her to slice through the seas with remarkable smoothness, while a pair of MTU engines delivers a top speed of 19.5 knots and a cruising speed of 16 knots. Among her luxurious amenities are a foredeck helipad, a full-beam beach club with a fold-down swim platform, a gym and wellness area, and a sundeck social hub centered around a sizeable jacuzzi for endless summer days on the water. At the time of her launch, Moonrise held the distinction of being the largest Feadship by waterline length and one of the longest yachts ever built in the Netherlands.
Trailing Moonrise is Nebula, a 73-meter support vessel built by Nobiskrug. The $40 million companion ship carries the toys, tenders, and helicopter operations and is expected to continue shadowing Koum’s newest acquisition, a yacht that was delivered recently and wasted no time making her maiden voyage straight to Norway. Moonrise may be leaving his fleet, but if anything, Koum’s newest acquisition proves that his appetite for immaculate engineering and quiet, uncompromising craftsmanship is only growing.
