Sorting Through Lebanon’s Seven Richest Men For Shits (And No) Giggles
Forbes has released its annual ranking of the richest people in the world. Notably, Carlos Slim Helú, the second richest man in the world, is of Lebanese descent. Instead of proudly claiming him as the only shining Lebanese beacon topping the ranking, lets take a closer look at the seven Lebanese men who also made the list, and yes, unfortunately only men made the list.
Out of the 1,826 individuals to make the Forbes cut, these Lebanese passed the bar. Six out of the seven either served as prime minister within the last decade or are directly related to a former prime minister. Oh, and in case you already hadn’t guessed, four out of the seven are brothers from the same family.
Former Prime Minister Najib Mikati and his brother Taha rank as our richest Lebanese men, coming in at 534th in the world ranking. Together they owned a Telecom company called Investcom, which operated in Syria and Africa. They sold the company in 2006 for a wad of cash and stock. Taha also continues to operate M1 Group, a holding company, with his son Azmi. Do we sense a future prime minister hopeful?
To his credit, Bahaa Hariri, the oldest son of former Prime Minister Rafik Hariri, split from the family business in 2008 to forge his own path. Having invested heavily in Jordan, he has grown his own holding company, Horizon Group. He also owns a majority of the logistics company, Global Express. Still, departing from a billionaire family business to become a richer billionaire? Color us impressed.
Of course, Saad Hariri makes the list as the current CEO of the family’s Saudi-based construction business, Oger. The company is one of the largest construction companies in Saudi Arabia and also owns stakes in Turk Telekom, Jordan’s Arab Bank, and several other regional banks. Of course, we don’t need to remind anyone that he is also a former prime minister and a hopeful for the position once again, that is, if Lebanon ever manages to cobble together a new government. We’re not holding our breaths.
And the prize for the only Lebanese billionaire to not have been prime minister or be directly related to a prime minister goes to Robert Mouawad. Mouawad instead owes his fortune to his family’s fine jewelry business, founded in 1891. In 2003, Mouawad turned the business over to his sons to focus on his real estate endeavors.
While studying in Paris, Fahd Hariri opened an interior design studio and sold furniture to Saudi clients. He now works to develop residential buildings in Beirut. Of course, his family money and political connections are never far away.
We may enjoy lamenting the explicit marriage of money and politics within Lebanon. A glance at this list doesn’t seem to paint a bright picture. However, perhaps its nice to have the reality so prominently displayed instead of shrouded in lobby groups, political pawns, and backroom deals as normally plays out in Western politics. At least in Lebanon the myth is removed, and it becomes all too clear that money and politics go hand-in-hand.
