Tony Ryan

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Dr. Tony Ryan (born 2 February 1936) is an Irish multi-millionaire, founder of Guinness Peat Aviation (GPA) and co-founder of Ryanair with Christy Ryan and Liam Lonergan. Ryanair is believed to be the main source of his current wealth: the company is now one of the biggest airlines in Europe and is valued at several billion euro. Tony Ryan is believed to have a personal fortune ranging between €800m and €1bn. He holds honorary doctorates from several universities, including Trinity College, Dublin, the National University of Ireland and the University of Limerick.

His initial fortune came from GPA, the Commercial Aircraft Sales and Leasing company which he set up in 1975 with $50,000. The company grew to be worth $4 billion at its peak but its value dramatically collapsed in 1992 after the cancellation of its planned IPO. Dr. Ryan made €55m from the sale of AerFi (the successor to GPA) in 2000. Dr Ryan is a tax exile who lives in Monte Carlo, but also owns a stud farm near his home in Newmarket, Co. Tipperary. He was the 6th wealthiest individual from Ireland in the Sunday Times Rich List 2006.

Tony Ryan over the years helped nurture two successful business protègés - Denis O'Brien and Michael O'Leary - both of whom became multi-millionaires.

In 2001, Ryan acquired Castleton Farm from the Van Lennep Family Trust. Ryan renamed it Castleton Lyons and undertook renovations to the property while returning to its original roots as a thoroughbred operation.

He currently owns 16% of Tiger Airways, a discount carrier based in Singapore which was founded in December 2003.

[edit] Further reading

Ryanair: How a Small Irish Airline Conquered Europe by Siobhan Creaton - ISBN 1-85410-992-8: published about Ryanair's success and Tony Ryan's earlier enterprises.