Lord Jacob Rothschild has died at the age of 87, his family announced on February 26.
“Our father Jacob was a towering presence in many peoples’ lives – a superbly accomplished financier, a champion of the arts and culture, a devoted public servant, a passionate supporter of charitable causes in Israel and and Jewish culture, a keen environmentalist and much-loved friend, father and grandfather," said his family in a press statement. No cause of death was given.
Even people far removed from the world of finance know the name Rothschild, which is synonymous with vast wealth, power and influence. The storied clan began with Mayer Amschel Rothschild, born in 1744. The dynasty has come a long way since then, with the Rothschild family's holdings ranging from financial services to industries such as mining, energy, real estate, and philanthropy.
Besides defining various periods in financial history, the Rothschilds have been credited with bankrolling social and economic upheavals, military operations and election campaigns throughout the globe. They were reputed to have been involved in behind-the-scenes negotiations that resulted in Great Britain's Balfour Declaration pledging to establish "a national home for the Jewish people" in Palestine in 1917, which later led to the creation of Israel.
Sputnik recently delved into the background of Lord Jacob Rothschild, prominent billionaire financier, investor, and philanthropist, who has also been associated with secretive and shady backroom business dealings.
Early Years & Family
Jacob Rothschild was born in Berkshire, England, on April 29, 1936. He was the only son of the late Victor Rothschild, the 3rd Baron Rothschild, and his first wife, Barbara Hutchinson.
After completing studies at Eton College, he went on to study history at Christ Church college, Oxford University.
He was married to Serena Mary Dunn, who passed away in 2019. The couple had four children: Hannah Mary Rothschild, Matilda Rothschild, Emily Magda Rothschild, and Nathaniel Philip Victor James Rothschild.
Career
Jacob Rothschild began his career in 1963 at the family bank - NM Rothschild & Sons. In 1980, he opted to build his own empire, leaving the family-run business to co-found the-then J Rothschild Assurance Group (now St James's Place plc).
Rothschild became chair of RIT Capital Partners - one of the largest investment trusts on the London Stock Exchange - in 1988. He stepped down in 2019.
Rothschild was also deputy chair of BSkyB Television between 2003 and 2008.
Being a patron of the arts, Jacob Rothschild served as chair of trustees of the National Gallery (1985 – 1991), and chair of the Heritage Lottery Fund (1994 -l 1998.)
The financier also founded Windmill Hill Asset Management to manage the family’s charitable foundations. The banker also held the position of honorary president at the Institute for Jewish Policy Research. After Jacob Rothschild's passing, the Rothschild Foundation will be now headed by his daughter, Hannah.
Jacob Rothschild's net worth was estimated to be around $5 trillion in 2023 as per Forbes, positioning him as the world's unofficial wealthiest individual.
What About the Late Baron's Shady Deals?
In 2006, it was revealed that Jacob Rothschild was acting as a figurehead for Russian oligarch Mikhail Khodorkovsky, the former owner of Yukos, a Russian oil company that went bankrupt in that same year.
Khodorkovsky had amassed enormous wealth in the privatization wave of the 1990s. He was arrested in 2003 on charges of embezzlement and tax fraud. Control of Khodorkovsky’s shares in Yukos was passed to Jacob Rothschild under a “deal” they concluded earlier, The Sunday Times reported at the time.
Khodorkovsky and Lord Rothschild jointly financed projects of the UK-registered Open Russia Foundation. The private NGO established by Khodorkovsky and Yukos Oil Company shareholders in 2001 was banned as “undesirable” by Russia’s Prosecutor General’s Office in 2017.
Jacob Rothschild also acquired a 5% stake in Genie Energy, a US-based energy subsidiary of the IDT Corporation, which had secured exclusive oil rights in an area of the Golan Heights in 2010. Joining him on the board of the oil and gas exploration company were media tycoon Rupert Murdoch, former US Vice President Dick Cheney, ex-CIA director James Woolsey, hedge fund manager Michael Steinhardt, and Rothschild himself. Reports indicated that Rothschild's shares in Genie Energy were valued at $10 million.
Throughout his extensive career, Jacob Rothschild rubbed shoulders with the likes of late US Secretary of State Henry Kissinger, ex-US presidents Ronald Reagan and Bill Clinton, former UK Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher, ex-French president Francois Mitterand, American businessman, investor, and philanthropist Warren Buffet, eventually retiring from his business career in 2008.
Last year, Russia's renowned prankster duo Vladimir Kuznetsov and Alexei Stolyarov, known professionally as Vovan and Lexus, tricked Alexandre de Rothschild, the executive chairman of Rothschild & Co and great-great-great-great-grandson of the infamous Rothschild banker dynasty’s founder, into spilling the beans on some key details.
Believing that he was talking with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, Rothschild disclosed his company's plans to participate in the "restoration of Ukraine" in sectors like energy, housing construction, and logistics. He claimed that his company has been working in the interests of the Ukrainian government since 2017.