When it comes to the world of investments, just three words come to mind: overwhelming, risky, and yet lucrative. Investing is by no means an easy job as there are countless considerations and infinite risks to take care of. But thankfully, from Benjamin Graham to modern-day pundit Dave Ramsey all have shared their priceless expertise on successful investments, which inspired generations of young investors and continue to do so.
Investing is by no means an easy task, with countless factors to consider before every move you make – but from historic investment heroes such as Benjamin Graham, to modern-day heavyweights including Warren Buffett and George Soros, there’s no denying that the possibilities are infinite, with some seeing the kind of success the majority could only dream of.
Warren Buffett
With an estimated net worth of $64.3 billion, Warren Buffett is widely considered to be the most successful investors in history – and as such, requires little introduction. Such are his accomplishments that these days, when he talks, world markets move as a result – which we’re pretty sure says it all.
At the age of 20, he enrolled in an ‘Investment Principles’ night class at the University of Nebraska, Omaha – purchasing a Sinclair Texaco petrol station as a side investment. He became a millionaire in 1962 thanks to extensive profits from a range of different partnerships, with his fortune only multiplying thanks to numerous savvy investments in the years since.
Peter Lynch and John C. Bogle
These two gentlemen do not need any kind of introduction. Peter Lynch came into the scene in 1977, when he became head of the Fidelity Magellan. During his time, the fund’s assets grew from just $20 million to $14 billion. More importantly, Magellan funds reportedly beat the S&P 500 Index benchmark for 11 years.
Since its foundation in 1946, the Fidelity Investment has become a cornerstone of financial services companies around the world. As of August 2016, Fidelity Investment’s total AUM stands at the U.S. $2.1 Trillion.
Stephen Schwarzman
Thought to be worth upwards of $18.5 billion, Stephen Scwarzman became a prolific investor after rising through the ranks at the investment bank Lehman Brothers, where he eventually became the managing director – aged just 31. In 1985, he teamed up with fellow billionaire Peter Peterson to create mergers and acquisitions company, the Blackstone Group – which later expanded into leveraged buyouts. Today, it manages over $470 billion in assets and trades.
Yuri Milner
Yuri Milner started his business career by grey marketing DOS computers in his home country, the Soviet Union. After working in the World Bank for a brief period of time, he invested in NetBridge, an internet company that would later become Mail.ru Group. The company was valued over $5.6 billion after its IPO on the London Stock Exchange.
Milner then invested in social media giants Facebook and Twitter, through his popular venture fund, DST Global. He later sold those stakes but invested in new startups like Spotify and Airbnb. He also went big on Chinese tech companies, including online retailers Alibaba and JD.com.
Bill Lipschutz
An immensely successful day trader born in 1956, Bill Lipschutz focuses on foreign exchange markets, and is also the co-founder and director of portfolio management at Hathersage Capital Management. Often referred to as ‘the Sultan of Currencies’, he’s known for his unique and fascinating approach to trading, and has previously described Forex as ‘a very psychological market’.
The signs were there early on in life, since Bill was a maths fanatic throughout his school years – but we can’t imagine his teachers would have predicted such meteoric success.
Guo Guangchang
Guo Guangchang is the Chinese billionaire who is frequently dubbed as China’s Warren Buffett. According to the Hurun Report in 2013 China Rich List, he was the 41st richest person in China. And in 2015, he was listed as the 34th richest person in China by Forbes, with a net worth of $7.3 billion.
His Shanghai-headquartered investment firm, Fosun International, holds majority stakes in Nanjing Iron and Steel and Shanghai Forte Land, one of the largest real estate developers in Shanghai, China. Recently, Fosun International has acquired Club Med and increased its stake in Cirque du Soleil to 20%.
Edward Johnson III
Started as a research analyst at his father’s owned investment company (Fidelity Investments) in 1957, Edward Crosby Johnson III is now a well known and respected figure in the world of the stock market. After a successful venture as a research analyst, he soon became the portfolio manager for the Fidelity Trend Funds in 1960 and then ran the famous Fidelity Magellan Funds for more than a decade from 1963-1977.
It was Edward Johnson who brought the revolutionary discount brokerage into practice. He also initiated the practice of permitting check writing on money marketing funds. In 1972, he became president of the company and was later elected Chairmen and CEO in 1977.
Paul Tudor Jones
Another who has turned more than just a tidy profit trading forex, Paul Tudor Jones is considered one of the wealthiest traders alive, and as of this year, has a net worth of $6 billion. It might seem like small fry compared to the others so far on this list, but a billion is a billion – and we don’t know many who would turn their noses up at six.
After studying at the University of Virginia and graduating with a degree in Economics, he turned down an offer to attend the prestigious Harvard Business School, opting instead to work as a commodities trader in the NYSE.
He later went on to found his hedge fund, Tudor Investment Corporation, in 1980, and made his money by betting on fluctuations in interest rates on the forex market.
Another major philanthropist, he is also the founder of poverty reduction charity, the Robin Hood Fund, and pours money into its projects each year.
Ronald Perelman
Through his investment company MacAndrews & Forbes Incorporated, Ron Perelman, who earned a reputation as one of the fiercest corporate raiders of the 1980s, invested in a wide range of companies that encapsulate dairy products, cosmetics, automobiles, entertainment, security, gaming, apparels, banks, and publishing sector. He now owns a 70% stake in AM General, owner of the popular Military HMMWV or Humvee, whose value stands at $1 Billion.
August von Finck, Jr.
August von Finck is a Germany born billionaire residing in Switzerland. Though a person of rich background, Mr. Finck made fame with his own peerless investment practices. He acquired larger shares of Merck, Finck & Co. Munich Re and Allianz from his father, which were co-founded by his grandfather Wilhelm von Finck during the 1870s.
In the 1990s, he executed a large scale selling of Allianz shares as well as Merck, Finck & Co to British multinational financial company Barclays bank. He has invested in a diversified portfolio that includes major real estate and industrial companies.
His 15% stake in Switzerland’s Societe Generale de Surveillance (SGS), the world’s leading testing and certification organization, alone is worth over $2 billion.
Philip Anschutz
Philip Anschutz is a highly followed figure among the American sports fans as he owns major stakes in Los Angeles Lakers and Los Angeles Kings. He is also a co-founder of Major League Soccer, as well as the owner of multiple teams. Apart from sports, he also has a keen interest in railroad and petroleum businesses.
The Colorado-based billionaire started with his dad’s small oil business, which nearly collapsed in 1961. A decade later, he bought 9 million acres (36,000 km²) of land along the Utah-Wyoming border.
In 1984, he entered the railroad business by purchasing Rio Grande Industries (RGI) and soon became the chairman of Union Pacific after the merger of Rio Grande’s Southern Pacific and Union Pacific Corporation in 1996.
Anschutz Entertainment Group (AEG) is one of the primary sports and music entertainment presenters in the United States. The AEG owns various arenas, including the Staples Center in Los Angeles, California, StubHub Center in Carson, California and currently possess the O2 entertainment venue in South East London, England.
Alisher Usmanov
Alisher Burkhanovich Usmanov is an Uzbek-born Russian business magnate. In 2014, he became the richest person in Russia, with the total reported wealth of $14.4 billion. Like his fellow billionaire countrymen and a close friend Roman Abramovich, Usmanov also has a keen interest in metal and mining operations, although his exploits are far-reaching.
Among his vast holdings is the Russian industrial conglomerate, Metalloinvest, which owns a wide range of metal and mining businesses. He was also one of the early investors of I.T. giant Facebook, but he sold his shares in 2013. Usmanov then invested in China’s e-commerce giant Alibaba through Yuri Miller’s global fund in 2011.
He is a co‑owner of Russia’s second-largest mobile telephone operator, MegaFon, and co-owns the Mail.ru group, the largest Internet company in the Russian-speaking world.
