- Facebook cofounder Eduardo Saverin is currently the wealthiest person living in Singapore.
- He just donated $15 million to the Singapore American School.
- The school said it would use the donation to fund key projects, such as building new laboratories.
Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg's former business partner is making a massive donation to the Singapore American School.
Facebook cofounder Eduardo Saverin donated 20 million Singapore dollars, or around $15.5 million, to SAS, the school announced on Friday. It's the biggest donation the school has ever received.
SAS is a private school in Woodlands, an area in northern Singapore close to Malaysia. The school had 4,100 students enrolled in 2023. Over half of those were US citizens, per a US state department fact sheet.
The school charges up to $47,000 a year in tuition and accepts students from pre-kindergarten through high school.
SAS will use Saverin's donation to fund projects including laboratories and a new elementary school, Tom Boasberg, the school's superintendent, said in the announcement.
Boasberg also said the donation will bolster SAS' Chinese immersion program, a bilingual initiative aimed at elementary school students.
A spokeswoman for the school told Business Insider the donation will be used to fund training for teachers and incorporate artificial intelligence into its curriculum.
"This is the first time the Saverin family has made a gift to our school," SAS told BI. "SAS has developed a meaningful relationship with the Saverin family through their involvement as current parents."
The school's announcement quotes Saverin's wife, Elaine Saverin, as saying the donation is a "significant and meaningful" way to demonstrate their commitment to the school and the community.
Saverin was born in Brazil. He moved to Singapore with his family in 2009. He renounced his US citizenship two years later, before Facebook — now known as Meta — went public in 2012.
In 2015, Saverin cofounded B Capital, an investment firm, and now serves as its co-CEO.
Saverin retains a 2% stake in Meta, which is estimated to be worth around $30.5 billion. This makes Saverin the wealthiest man in Singapore, Forbes reported earlier this month.
Singapore, which has no capital gains tax, has for years been an attractive destination for high-net-worth individuals, as well as for those setting up family offices. Sergey Brin, Ray Dalio, and James Dyson have all set up family offices in Singapore.
SAS' campus spans 36 acres. It has an indoor air-conditioned rock climbing gym and a two-acre natural rainforest. The school was founded in 1956.
Saverin did not immediately respond to a request for comment from BI.
September 25, 10:49 a.m. SGT: This story has been updated with a comment from SAS.