Despite the controversy surrounding him, Jonathan Jacob Meijer, featured in Netflix’s three-part docu-series The Man with 1,000 Kids, has amassed a net worth of thousands that allows him to travel the world.
Jonathan has donated his sperm for 17 years since 2007 and confirmed in his YouTube video that he has fathered around 600 children globally.
Besides being a sperm donor, Jonathan Meijer is a Dutch YouTuber and musician who has also worked as a civics teacher, cryptocurrency consultant, and mail carrier, according to The Mirror.
While there is no specific official figure for the net worth of Jonathan Meijer, by 2024, many sources estimated it to be around $600,000 to $900,000 based on his various professional activities.
Moreover, he was living a modest lifestyle, but currently, as per his YouTube channel, he is traveling the world.
Jonathan Meijer became a sperm donor in his 20s and continued for almost a decade illegally!
Although the Netherlands restricts men to 25 donations to up to 12 different women, Jonathan fathered 102 babies through donations to 11 different clinics and the international sperm bank Cryos.
In 2017, the Dutch Society of Obstetrics and Gynecology banned him from donating sperm. But he reportedly lied to potential parents and clinics, pledging to each that he’d donated solely to their banks.
Moreover, he also donated sperm directly to individuals by joining Facebook groups for women suffering from infertility or limited fertility and making private arrangements.
Il s'appelle Jonathan Meijer et pourrait bien être le père de 550 enfants. Il a commencé à donner son sperme à l'âge de 25 ans, il en a 43 aujourd'hui. Des familles, étonnées de découvrir des enfants ressemblant aux leurs, ont décidé d'attaquer ce serial donneur.
— M6 Info (@m6info) March 13, 2024
🎥 @bastinheau pic.twitter.com/ACjkMu9AHf
Likewise, he also traveled outside the Netherlands to donate sperm, using fake names at different clinics to exceed donor limits.
Eventually, 150 parents of Jonathan’s children connected online and contacted the Donorkind Foundation for help. A representative for the foundation told ABC News that the calls came from “all over the world.”
So, again, in April 2023, a court forbade him from donating any more sperm in the Netherlands and ordered clinics worldwide to destroy his samples. Moreover, the court sanctioned up to £100,000 ($110,613.04) per donation if he was found donating again.
Jonathan Meijer, who is accused of donating sperm around the world to so many clinics & women that he fathered hundreds of children, told @bbcnuala he doesn't see anything wrong with it.
— BBC Woman's Hour (@BBCWomansHour) July 3, 2024
His story features in a new Netflix series, The Man with 1000 Kids.
🎧 ⬇️
In October 2023, Jonathan said that because he doesn’t have a family history of cancer, diabetes, or genetic diseases, he thought donating sperm would be a kind thing to do for others.
Likewise, he said, “I don’t understand the obsession with the numbers. I became a donor out of love to help parents, not for any numbers.“
Additional Information
- In a July 2024 YouTube video, he said that he comes from a large family with seven siblings.
- His relationships with some donor families deteriorated after the 2023 court decision and participation in the Netflix documentary.
