Full Name Joseph Lewis Term –present Years active 1958–present Net worth 5.3 billion USD (2015) | Occupation Businessman Role British businessman Nationality British Name Joe Lewis | |
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Title Chairman of Tavistock Group | ||
Organizations founded Tavistock Group Spouse(s) Esther Browne (div.), Jane Lewis Children Vivienne Lewis Silverton, Charles Lewis Similar Daniel Levy (businessman), Claude Littner, George Soros | ||
Joe lewis white from the american bar at the savoy london chrysanthemum
Joseph C. "Joe" Lewis (born 5 February 1937) is a British businessman, investor, and art collector who currently lives in New Providence, Bahamas.
Contents
- Joe lewis white from the american bar at the savoy london chrysanthemum
- Joe lewis white from the american bar at the savoy london basil ionides
- Early life
- Currency trading
- Tavistock Group
- Property
- Lake Nona Medical City
- Escondido Lake and controversy
- Bear Stearns
- Mitchells Butlers
- Personal life
- Art collection
- References
Lewis' total wealth is estimated at $US5.3 billion, and he is listed as the 248th richest person on Forbes’ List of billionaires (2016). Forbes reports that Lewis is the sixth wealthiest person in the UK.
Joe lewis white from the american bar at the savoy london basil ionides
Early life
Lewis was born to a Jewish family above a public house in Roman Road, Bow, London. Lewis left school at 15 to help run his father's West End of London catering business Tavistock Banqueting. When he took the reins, he quickly expanded it by selling luxury goods to American tourists, and also owned West End club the Hanover Grand, where he gave Robert Earl his first job and The Nolans. He later sold the business in 1979 to make his initial wealth.
Currency trading
After selling the family business in the late 1970s, Lewis moved into currency trading in the 1980s and 1990s, resulting in his move to the Bahamas where he is now a tax exile. In September 1992, Lewis teamed up with George Soros to bet on the pound crashing out of the European Exchange Rate Mechanism. The event, which was dubbed Black Wednesday, made Lewis very wealthy, and some say he made more than Soros. Lewis is still an active FX trader.
Tavistock Group
Lewis is the main investor in Tavistock Group, which owns more than 200 companies in 15 countries. Tavistock Group's portfolio includes:
Property
Lewis hosts the Tavistock Cup tournament every March in Florida, raising millions of dollars for charity, and owns three of the four clubs that compete: Albany, Lake Nona Golf & Country Club and Isleworth Golf & Country Club. Lewis built a golf community in the Bahamas called Albany, which opened October 2010. Woods and Els are also major shareholders in the luxury resort community located in New Providence. Lewis made a £70 million investment in Bulgarian property development.
Lake Nona Medical City
Lewis seeded Lake Nona, covering 7,000 acres next to Orlando’s international airport, with $100 million in gifts and land which was cultivated into a large-scale community offering research and educational facilities, hospitals for veterans and children, a town center, and a range of workspaces and residential options.
Escondido Lake and controversy
Since Lewis bought a property in Río Negro Province, Argentina, public access to Escondido lake has been under discussion. The Argentine law asserts that every water course is public and of free access. In 2009 Lewis was ordered by the Superior Tribunal de Justicia (STJ) to create and keep access to the lake, with "sufficient signage and to keep it transitable", but the ruling has not been enforced. Lewis' frontman Van Ditmer stated: "We are going to defend the private property with the Winchester in the hands; with blood if needed".
Lewis' property encircles the lake. While some have called for another public mountain trail to be built to access the lake, El Consejo de Ecología y Medio Ambiente de Río Negro (the Council of Ecology and Environment of Río Negro) does not support building another pass, which would cause harm to the environmentally protected area.
He is currently planning to use a huge protected area, 4 times the size of the city of Buenos Aires, for another private development, against the wishes of the locals. The property was bought for 69 pesos per hectare, currently about $4 USD. This low price was secured by using the name of a local 'poblador' on the deed, after which it was transferred to him. It is suggested that the Hidden Lake property is needed to supply water and (hydraulic) energy to this new property, dubbed the private state in Patagonia. In January 2017, new mass protests have started in El Bolson against this project.
Bear Stearns
On 10 September 2007, Lewis paid US$860.4 million in an all-cash purchase of a 7% stake in Bear Stearns. By December 2007 Lewis had raised his stake at the brokerage firm to 9.4%, a total of 11 million shares, for which he paid an average price of $107 apiece. After the purchase of Bear Stearns by JP Morgan for $10 a share, it was estimated that Lewis lost $1.16 billion on his investment.
Mitchells & Butlers
Lewis is the largest shareholder in the British public house group Mitchells & Butlers, controlling 26.85% of the issued share capital through his investment vehicle Piedmont, which he built up since 2008. It was reported on 27 August 2011 that Lewis had made a zero premium proposal for the pub group of 224p a share. He later revealed on 12 September 2011 that he was considering raising his earlier offer to 230p a share, a 4.5% premium. However, independent M&B board members rejected the offer as "significantly undervaluing" the business.
Personal life
Lewis has been married twice. His first marriage to Esther Browne ended in divorce. They had two children:
Joe Lewis is now married to Jane Lewis.
Lewis owns the superyacht Aviva, which he uses as his personal mobile office.
Art collection
Lewis' art collection, estimated to be worth $1 billion, includes works by Picasso, Matisse, Lucian Freud and sculptor Henry Moore. Lewis bought Francis Bacon's Triptych 1974–1977 in 2008 for £26.3 million, then a record for postwar artwork bought in Europe.