CEOs rake in a record haul by sleeping rough

Australia's business leaders did what they do best overnight by making big bucks, although this time it was for a worthy cause in the annual Vinnies CEO Sleepout.

Funds raised nationally from the charity event have reached a record $6.3 million, edging closer to the $6.42 million target set for 2018.

However, the funds raised are already more than 12 per cent up on last year's $5.6 million total.

Vinnies CEO Sleepout raises money to provide people experiencing homelessness with access to food and accommodation, as well as key resources that can help them overcome poverty in the longer term.

This year's CEO Sleepout drew 1480 participants across 11 cities.

Sydney CEOs raised the most money for the cause, contributing $1.7 million to the total, followed by Brisbane at $1.04 million.

Melbourne ($814,792), Adelaide ($675,557) and Canberra ($570,692) rounded out the top five fundraising cities.

Among the individual participants, BankSA boss Nick Reade tops the list of fundraisers with a total of $172,499 pledged.

He was followed by Brisbane power industry maverick Trevor St Baker, of St Baker Energy Innovation Fund and founder of ERM Power, who raised $150,055.

Vedran Drakulic, the CEO of Gandel Philanthropy, has raised just over $135,000 and Barry Felstead, the CEO of Crown Resorts' Australian resorts, has raised about $122,000.

The mysterious Mr and Mrs Gold Coast round off the top five with close to $78,00 pledged, well above their initial goal of just $2000.

Gold Coast CEOs broadly punched above their weight, raising $457,592, just behind Perth at a little over $512,000.

The very first CEO Sleepout was held in 2006 as a community event in Parramatta. Th program was initiated by Bernard Fehon, the managing director of Tactical Solutions.

Last year's event raised enough to provide more than 1.9 million individual support programs, almost 690,000 beds and 1.59 million meals.