Rank #1044
Otto Happel
Net worth $4.1B
Engineering · Germany
- Born
- Feb 09, 1948
- Age
- 78
- Source
- Engineering
- Residence
- Luzerne
- Citizenship
- Germany
- Marital status
- Married
- Children
- 6
- Education
Net worth over time
Biography
- Otto Happel, who studied engineering, inherited his father's dust-removal business and turned it into thermal engineering firm GEA.
- In 1999, he sold his 50.1% GEA stake to Germany's MG Technologies for around $775 million in cash and kept a 10% interest in the combined group.
- In 2005, the company renamed itself GEA Group. Happel cashed out in 2006, selling his remaining stake to institutional investors for $700 million.
- In 2015, he attended the World Economic Forum in his role as chairman of the Swiss private wealth management firm Luserve AG.
- A foundation in his name supports projects in the developing world.
- He has a super-yacht named Hetairos and lives in Switzerland with his wife and six children.