Iris Fontbona

Fortune

Fontbona is one of the richest people in the world, missing the list of top 100 on the Forbes list by one spot in 2016. She was the fifth wealthiest person in Latin America in 2016. She is the richest person in Chile, with a net worth as of March 2017 of $12.9 billion.

In 2016, her wealth was estimated at US$9.9 billion, a decrease from the previous year. She consistently ranks as one of the top ten richest women in the world on a list that generally includes only heiress.

In 2014, Forbes considered Iris Fontbona & family to be the 4th richest family in Latin America. She is the only woman to appear on Forbes list from Latin America. For several years, she was one of only two billionares in Chile on the list, before being joined by nine others in 2016. In 2015, she was ranked 82nd on the Forbes list. In 2013, Fontbona was ranked the 35th richest person on Bloomberg's Billionare List. This position fell to 83rd in 2016. Fontbana lost a quarter of her wealth in 2012.

Fontbona acquired her wealth following the death of her husband, Andrónico Luksic Abaroa, in 2005 from cancer.

The bulk of her husband's business went to their three sons, Guillermo, Jean Paul and Andronico. Jean Paul manages Antofagasta, Luksic Group's copper mining group and one of the largest mining companies in the world.

Business

Fontbona and her family control Antofagasta, the Santiago-based mining company. Through the publicly-traded company Quiñenco, they control Banco de Chile, Madeco, a copper products manufacturer, the country's largest brewer CCU, and a shipping company, CSAV. CSAV is the world's 16th largest shipping company as measured by TEUs. In 2013, she controlled 65% of Antofagasta.

Following the death of her husband, business of her husband under her control, "Fontbona managed to make their family business grow and reach its new heights of success".

This included turning the business in the second biggest bank in Chile, the biggest brewer in the world, manager of the largest copper mines in the world and controlling the world's largest shipping company. Another one of her businesses is a pair of luxury hotel chains and a luxury resort in Croatia. One of her first major actions following her husband's death was to acquire a 70% stake in Chilean television station, Canal 13. Much of her power in the company appears to be indirect. Major business decisions impacting the company largely run by her son, Andrónico Luksic Craig, need to be approved of by Fontbona.

Philanthropy

In 2015, Fontbona donated a record $4.3 million to the annual Chilean Telethon, which seeks to help children with physical disabilities. She appears on television for a telethon, which also takes place before a live audience.

In 2016, she donated another large sum, $4.400 millones, which assisted in setting a record for the charity event in terms of funds raised.

Background

Fontbona was born in 1942, and attended a Catholic high school. When she was a 17-year-old, she met Andrónico Luksic Abaroa who was 20 years older than her and married him by the time she was 18. Luksic had five children by his first wife, Patricia Lederer, who had predeceased him. Fontbona became the mother of Andrónico Luksic Craig when he was a 7-year-old. Another son was Guillermo Luksic, who died of lung cancer in 2013. The couple had three children of their own. One son, Davor Luksic, was mentioned as having several offshare companies in the Panama Papers.

Fontbona spends time in three primary residences, including Vitacura, Santiago, Chile, along with Belgravia in London, and in Liechtenstein. She is a devout Roman Catholic. She keeps a low profile but garners much media attention annually during the Chilean Telethon. She does not grant interviews.

Her nephew is Rodrigo Terré.