Cypriot millionaires have appeared for the first time in the annual Greek Rich List, an ethnic spin-off of the Sunday Times Rich List, that also saw the Greeks and Greek Cypriots in the U.K. lose 61% of their fortunes in the past year due to the financial crisis.
The Cyprus section, compiled in cooperation with the Financial Mirror, includes ten of the richest individuals and families, with their worth estimated using a conservative valuation.
Top of the list is Efthyvoulos Paraskevaides, son of the co-founder of the J&P construction giant, with an estimated worth of EUR 450 mln from his holdings in the construction and energy sectors in Cyprus, Greece, the Middle East and the U.S. He also has a diverse portfolio of investments in the food and beverage (KFC, Pepsi Cyprus), pharmaceuticals and consumer goods distribution, as well as the leisure industries (Londa, Ledra Marriott).
Next in line is the Lanitis family, headed by brothers Platon, Marios and Costas (EUR 400 mln), who have wisely diversified their investments to include a significant stake in the family-controlled bank that has since developed into the Marfin Laiki Group, and other ‘traditional’ holdings in construction (Cybarco), hotels and travel (Amathus, Limassol Marina, Aphrodite Hills), and leisure (Fassouri).
Elena Ambrosiadou (EUR 216 mln), known as “Britain’s highest-paid woman” because of the multi-billion Ikos hedge fund she managed with her former husband, Martin Coward, has joined the Cyprus List ever since the company’s base was moved to Limassol. According to press reports from London, Ambrosiadou, 48, paid herself more than GBP 15.9 mln in 2004, giving her an accumulated personal fortune of about GBP 200 mln.
Any list of the rich and famous would be incomplete without Nicos Shacolas (EUR 208 mln), head of the NKS and CTC empires that range from consumer goods distribution and retail (Debenhams), to telecoms (MTN, Germanos), property (Mall of Cyprus, Limni resort) and major development projects, the most significant being the Hermes Airports venture which he chairs and which operates the current 25-year concession for the new airports at Larnaca and Paphos.
Fifth on the list is Andreas Pittas (EUR 100 mln), the founder and chief executive of Medochemie, one of the leading small-sized international pharmaceuticals companies with exports of ‘generic’ drugs reaching almost every market in the world, primarily the E.U. Dr Pittas’ perseverance to promote and safeguard local industry has also landed him the unenviable burden of heading the Employers and Industrialists Federation (OEV) at a time of economic crisis and industrial hardship.
The Top Ten of Cyprus is concluded by Andreas Kaisis (property, online trade – EUR 90 mln), Michalakis Leptos and his sons George and Pantelis (property, hotels, education – EUR 64 mln), brothers Demos, Christos and Glafkos Mouskis (hotels, aluminium – EUR 55 mln), Costakis Loizou (cruise ships, hotels, travel – EUR 52 mln), and brothers Ermis, Sotos and Stephanos Stephanou (travel, telecoms, distribution – EUR 48 mln).
The Financial Mirror/Greek Rich List cooperation is expected to continue in 2010 with the two partners expecting to double the names of the wealthiest in Cyprus, while a special provision will be made for the non-Greek millionaires on the island, such as the Norwegian shipping and oil-rig tycoon John Fredriksen (EUR 2.7 bln) who has opted for Cypriot citizenship and German shipping families, such as the Oldendorffs, Schoeller and Schulte.
The richest in Greece are dominated by shipping, industry and telecoms, with the list compiled by the editors of Economia Business Media primarily from the Athens Stock Exchange.
Topping the list is Spiros Latsis (finance, oil, shipping, property – EUR 2.6 bln), followed by the Canellopoulos and Papalexopoulos families (cement – EUR 607 mln), Vardis Vardinogiannis (oil, shipping, media – EUR 560 mln), Nicos and Evangelos Stassinopoulos (metals, manufacturing – EUR 405 mln) and Ioannis Costopoulos (banking – EUR 335 mln).
In an alternative method of estimating wealth, Greece’s “tonne millionaires” include John Angelicoussis, George Economou, Nicos Tsakos, Peter Georgiopoulos and Angeliki Frangou.
RICHEST IN U.K., U.S.
Philip Beresford, editor of the Sunday Times’ Rich List, said that of the 100 Greek and Greek Cypriot millionaires listed in the U.K. last year, only half made it to this year’s list, with their fortunes diminishing by 61% to a combined GBP 6.81 bln.
“The Greek Cypriot community in Britain is reckoned to be among the most successful ethnic groups in economic terms,” he said, adding that “The Greek rich tend to be successful professionals or members of dynasties from Greece, while the much larger Greek Cypriot community is the product of economic migration.
With Alkis David of the David/Leventis empire heading the list at GBP 1.2 bln (he unsettled Stelios Haji-Ioannou from pole position last year), Beresford estimates that the average wealth of the Greeks millionaires in the U.K. is GBP 136 mln.
Philippe Niarchos (shipping, art) is second with a wealth of GBP 750 mln, followed by Sir Stelios and his family at GBP 564 mln, and Michael Lemos (shipping – GBP 550 mln). Next on the list are property and shipping tycoons, headed by Cypriot Chris Lazari (GBP 425 mln), while retail and investment guru Theo Paphitis is at 12th (GBP 145 mln).
Across the Atlantic, the Greeks dominate the American list with hardly any Greek Cypriots making it. Topping them all is the Haseotis family that commands Cumberland Farms, the third biggest dairy farm in the U.S. giving them a combined wealth of USD 3.2 bln.
The Australian List is headed by the father and son pair of Con and Ross Makris who are into development and shopping malls, amassing a fortune of AUD 1.1 bln.
FILM STARS
Other Greeks who appear in the U.K. or U.S. lists include entertainers and actors such as George Michael (GBP 90 mln) and Jennifer Aniston (USD 160 mln).
The first ‘World’ Greek Rich List has been achieved due to publisher Savvas Pavlou’s new partnerships with the Financial Mirror (Cyprus), Economia Business Media (Greece), Neos Kosmos and BRW (Australia) and The National Herald (US) and include profiles from the UK, Greece, Australia, USA, Cyprus, Brazil, Bulgaria, Germany, South Africa, Canada and New Zealand.
Cautioning that this edition coincided with a global financial recession, the magazine went ahead to “celebrate and document entrepreneurial stories, to inspire young entrepreneurs and to promote Greek heritage and culture.”
