Carl Icahn Net Worth 16.4 billion USD. Carl Icahn is an American businessman, investor, and activist shareholder. Carl Icahn is best known as the founder and controlling shareholder of the holding company Icahn Enterprises in New York City. His investment strategy, which has become mainstream for hedge funds, involves buying large stakes in companies that he then pressures to make corporate policy changes that will benefit shareholders. In the 80s, Icahn was criticized for being a “corporate raider” when he profited from the hostile takeover of Trans World Airlines, and since then, has attempted a number of other mercenary takeovers and asset strips.
Carl Icahn Biography
| Name: | Carl Icahn |
|---|---|
| Real Name/Full Name: | Carl Celian Icahn |
| Gender: | Male |
| Age: | 86 years old |
| Birth Date: | 16 February 1936 |
| Birth Place: | Queens, New York, United States |
| Nationality: | American |
| Height: | 1.76 m |
| Weight: | 82 kg |
| Sexual Orientation: | Straight |
| Marital Status: | Married |
| Wife/Spouse (Name): | Gail Icahn (m. 1999), Liba Trejbal (m. 1979–1999) |
| Children: | Yes (Brett Icahn, Michelle Celia Icahn) |
| Dating/Girlfriend (Name): |
N/A |
| Profession: | American businessman, investor, and philanthropist |
| Net Worth in 2022: | 16.4 billion USD |
| Last Updated: | April 2022 |
Carl Icahn Net Worth
| Net Worth: | 16.4 billion USD |
|---|---|
| Age: | 85 |
| Born: | February 16, 1936 |
| Country of Origin: | United States of America |
| Source of Wealth: | Entrepreneur |
| Last Updated: | 2022 |
Carl Icahn Introduction
Carl Icahn is an American businessman. Icahn is the founder and controlling shareholder of Icahn Enterprises, a diversified conglomerate holding company based in New York City, formerly known as American Real Estate Partners. He is also Chairman of Federal-Mogul. As of 2022, Carl Icahn’s net worth is estimated to be roughly 16.4 billion USD.
Carl Icahn Early Life
Carl Celian Icahn was born on the 16th of February, 1936, in New York City. His father, an atheist, was a cantor who later served as a substitute teacher, and his mother was a schoolteacher. He studied at the ‘Far Rockaway High School’ and attended ‘Princeton University,’ where he obtained a ‘Bachelor of Arts’ degree in philosophy in 1957.
Carl Icahn Personal Life
In 1978, Icahn met Czech ballerina Liba Trejbal; when she became pregnant eight months later, he offered to wed her on the condition that she sign a prenuptial agreement. The two married in 1979, and had two children named Brett and Michelle. Later, in 1993, Trejbal filed for divorce and sued to invalidate the prenuptial agreement on the grounds that she signed it under duress. The couple finally divorced in 1999. Subsequently, Icahn married his longtime assistant Gail Golden, giving him two stepchildren in the process.
Icahn is an avid fan of thoroughbred horse racing. In 1985, he established the horse breeding operation Foxfield Thoroughbreds. Five years later, his horse Meadow Star won the Breeders’ Cup Juvenile Fillies. In 1992, he became a commercial breeder. Icahn ultimately shut down Foxfield in 2004, and sold all his weanlings and mares.
Carl Icahn Education
Carl Icahn was born on February 16, 1936 in the Brooklyn borough of New York City to Bella, a schoolteacher, and Michael, a cantor and later substitute teacher. Raised in Queens, Icahn went to Far Rockaway High School. Later, he attended Princeton University, graduating with an AB in philosophy in 1957. Icahn went on to enroll at New York University’s School of Medicine, but dropped out after two years to join the military reserve.
Carl Icahn Age, Height, and Weight
Being born on 16 February 1936, Carl Icahn is 86 years old as of today’s date 16th April 2022. His height is 1.76 m tall, and his weight is 82 kg.
Carl Icahn Career Beginnings in Business
Icahn entered the world of business affairs in 1961 when he became a stockbroker for Dreyfus Corporation. A couple years later, he worked as an options manager for Tessel, Patrick & Co., and then for Gruntal & Co. In 1968, Icahn used $150,000 of his own savings plus a $400,000 investment from his uncle to purchase a seat on the New York Stock Exchange. He subsequently formed Icahn & Co., which focused on options trading and risk arbitrage. Icahn’s first takeover attempt came in 1978, when he took a controlling stake in the appliance company Tappan and forced its sale to Electrolux, effectively doubling his investment. The next year, he bought Bayswater Realty & Capital Corporation. In the early 80s, Icahn acquired AFC Industries; selling his shares to Phillips Petroleum in 1985, he made a profit of $50 million. Cathie Wood Net Worth
Trans World Airlines Controversy
Icahn attracted much controversy in the mid-to-late 80s, when he pooled his funds with both borrowed and investor funds to purchase 50% of Trans World Airlines, before acquiring the company completely via a leveraged buyout. He then sold the company’s assets to repay his own debts, causing many to label him as a “corporate raider” engaged in asset stripping. Icahn went on to sell TWA’s London routes to American Airlines for $445 million, making him a profit while sending TWA into $540 million worth of debt.
Carl Icahn Highlights
Here are some of the best highlights of Carl Icahn’s career:
- Founder, owner, and chairman of Icahn Enterprises
- Trans World Airlines
- Icahn Partners (2004)
Carl Icahn Awards & Achievements
Icahn has received many awards in his business career. He was awarded as the Man of the Year in 1990. He was also honored with the Starlight Foundation’s Founder Award. In 2001, he was named as the Guardian Angel Man of the Year award. In 2006, he got the Effecting Change Award for his outstanding contributions to improve education.
Icahn has started a foundation for the Children’s Rescue Fund that focuses on the rehabilitation and empowerment of the needy and most vulnerable in society. In 2016, Icahn donated $1 million for US veterans groups.
Further Business Career
Beyond the TWA debacle, Icahn has been prolific in his mercenary business affairs. In 1986, he attempted an unsuccessful, $8 billion hostile takeover of U.S. Steel. He made a $200 million profit five years later when he sold his stake for $1 billion. Icahn also made a huge profit from his sale of his stake in Texaco in 1989. Later, in 1997, he made a profit from selling his 7.3% interest in RJR Nabisco, and also took control of Marvel Comics.
In 2004, Icahn started raising $3 billion to form his hedge fund Icahn Partners; he also took ownership stakes in Time Warner and Blockbuster Video. Among his other investments, he bought shares in such companies as Take-Two Interactive, Telik, Motricity, BEA Systems, Biogen, Yahoo!, Lawson Software, Mentor Graphics, Netflix, Nuance Communications, Hologic, Lyft, and many more. Additionally, he attempted a failed takeover of Lionsgate Films in 2011. Icahn has also invested hundreds of millions in Apple.
Carl Icahn Political Career
In the 2016 presidential election, Icahn endorsed Donald Trump. He also announced the creation of a super-PAC pledging $150 million for tax inversions on corporations. Following the election, Icahn became Special Advisor to the President on Regulatory Reform, a position he held until August of 2017. The next year, Icahn avoided millions in losses when he sold holdings in steel-price sensitive stock days before the Trump administration announced a tariff on steel imports.
Carl Icahn Career
Following a stint in the US army, he commenced his career as a stockbroker in 1961. He founded the securities firm ‘Icahn & Co.’ in 1968. The company dealt with options trading and risk arbitrage. He took a loan of US$ 400,000 from an uncle to buy a place for it on the ‘New York Stock Exchange.’ Icahn started acquiring substantial shares of individual companies in 1978, thereby obtaining controlling positions. He went for a hostile takeover of a major American airline ‘TWA’ in 1985 and became its chairman, thereby earning the reputation of a “corporate raider.” Icahn took ‘TWA private in 1988 and earned US$ 469 million as personal profit, while ‘TWA’ was left with a debt of US$ 540 million. He sold the London routes of ‘TWA’ to ‘American Airlines’ for US$ 445 million in 1991. He then came up with ‘lowestfares.com’ to sell tickets of ‘TWA.’ The American conglomerate ‘Icahn Enterprises,’ founded by him, was incorporated on February 17, 1987. The company invested in diverse industries such as energy, auto parts, casinos, metals, real estate, rail cars, home fashion, and food packaging. It was controlled by Icahn, who owned an 89.8% stake in it. Icahn was the chairman of several companies such as ‘American Railcar Industries,’ ‘WestPoint Home,’ ‘XO Communications,’ and ‘Imclone.’ He served as director of ‘Blockbuster’ till January 2010.