Nassef Sawiris

Nassef Onsi Sawiris (born in 1961) is an Egyptian billionaire businessman, the youngest of Onsi Sawiris' three sons (his brothers are Naguib Sawiris and Samih Sawiris). As of 2015 his net worth was estimated by Forbes to be $5.9 billion, making him the 240th richest person in the world.^[1]

Early life

Nassef Sawiris received his secondary education in the German International School of Cairo, Egypt. Then he continued at University of Chicago where he received a bachelor's degree in Economics in 1982.

Career

He oversaw the construction activities of Orascom since 1990 and is the CEO of Orascom Construction Industries since the company's incorporation in 1998.^[2] He was also a board member of NASDAQ Dubai from July 2008 - June 2010 where his is still a board member, and currently sits on the boards of Besix (Belgium) and NNS Holding (Luxembourg), and is a director at Lafarge.^[3] In addition, he served on the Board of Directors of the Cairo & Alexandria Stock Exchanges from 2004 to 2007.

Nassef Sawiris, the youngest of three entrepreneurial brothers, runs Orascom Construction Industries, Egypt's most valuable publicly traded company. It was founded by their father, Onsi, in 1950. In September the company announced plans to invest $1.4 billion to build a nitrogen fertilizer plant in Iowa in order to supply corn belt farmers. Production is slated to start in 2015. Iowa Governor Terry Branstad called it the largest investment ever in the state; Orascom Construction Industries will receive a $100 million tax break. Last year, Sawiris hooked up with Brazilian billionaire Eike Batista's EBX Group to develop a nitrogen fertilizer plant in Brazil. Orascom Construction plans to split its fertilizer and construction divisions into two publicly traded companies by the end of 2012. Sawiris also owns big stakes in cement giant Lafarge and cement producer Texas Industries.

Personal life

He is married with four children and lives in Cairo,^[1] and also maintains a residence in New York City.

References