Lars Windhorst

Lars Windhorst
Born (1976-11-22) November 22, 1976
Rahden, Germany
Residence London, UK
Occupation Executive Chairman and partner of the Sapinda Group

Lars Windhorst (born November 22, 1976 in Rahden, Germany) is a German entrepreneur who lives in London. At the beginning of the 1990s, when he was 16 years old, he attracted attention as the founder of Windhorst Electronics GmbH and Windhorst AG and made a name for himself as a successful young German businessman. In the first financial year Windhorst Electronics had almost 80 employees and generated around US$50 million. In 1995 Windhorst founded Windhorst Asia Pacific Holdings Ltd. and made Hong Kong his secondary home. The Windhorst Group began expanding in South-East Asia and China. In the years 1997 and 1998 the group was adversely affected by the Asian financial crisis and Lars Windhorst decided to regain ground by focusing on the new economy and dotcom sector. Windhorst New Technologies AG was founded. With the goal of listing companies on the Frankfurt Stock Exchange, capital was acquired from investors on a large scale. When the New Economy plunged into crisis and the stock and internet markets collapsed in 2001, the planned stock market flotation had to be called off. The entire Windhorst group of companies found itself in difficulties as a result. In 2003 Windhorst had to file for personal bankruptcy and bankruptcy for the Windhorst Group. In 2004 Windhorst co-founded the Sapinda Group. Following restructuring, Sapinda Holding B.V., which was founded in 2009 is the group’s parent company. Windhorst is the Executive Chairman and partner of the Sapinda Group and lives in London.[1]

Life

Childhood and early career

When he was eight years old Windhorst dreamed of becoming a businessman. At the age of 15 he was writing software and building his own computers. At this time, Windhorst, the son of a local stationery store owner, turned the family garage, in his hometown of Rahden in Germany, into a makeshift computer lab.[2] He mobilised his classmates to help him build PCs, which he later sold in his father’s shop and sought out suppliers of inexpensive individual components in China.[3]

Founding of first company

In 1993 when he was still at school, without completing his school leaving qualification, he established his first own company. As he was still underage, his parents helped him by signing contracts on his behalf and driving him to work every day. During this time he managed to build up a good network of contacts in trade, politics and society circles. Windhorst was well known as one of the most successful young entrepreneurs in Germany. He was the youngest representative of the aspiring young business generation, who was invited to join the former German Chancellor Helmut Kohl on a trip to Asia as part of the official government delegation. It was on this trip that Windhorst developed international business contacts,[4] making him an ‘exemplary young entrepreneur’ and the youngest participant in the World Economic Forum in Davos.

Businesses

Windhorst Electronics GmbH

In October 1993 Windhorst founded his first company, Windhorst Electronics GmbH, alongside Chinese businessman Ming Rong Zhang. The business activities of Windhorst Electronics GmbH initially focused on the import and trade of electronic components and computer parts from Asia as well as the sale of IT products throughout Germany and Europe. Just one year after the company was founded, Windhorst Electronics, with a total of 80 employees, reported a turnover volume of 80 million Deutsche Mark.

Windhorst Asia Pacific Holding Limited

In 1995 Windhorst moved to Hong Kong and founded Windhorst Asia Pacific Holding Limited, a holding company for the business operations of the group in Asia. Until 1996 the Windhorst Group expanded its business as a trading and investment firm in the electronics, industry, trade, real estate and finance sectors. The company had offices and branches in Europe and Asia, including in mainland China and Vietnam.

Windhorst New Technologies AG/Windhorst AG

In 2000 Windhorst founded Windhorst New Technologies AG with a focus on investments in the sector of internet and new technologies. In 2002 Windhorst New Technologies AG was all set to be listed on the Frankfurt Stock Exchange. However, when the new economy plunged into a crisis and the stock and internet markets collapsed in 2001, the group also found itself in difficulties and had to declare bankruptcy in 2003.[5]

Sapinda Group

In 2004 Lars Windhorst became co-founder of the investment group Sapinda, an internationally operating investment company, which provides medium-sized enterprises with its own and borrowed capital. He also became managing director of Vatas Holding GmbH, which at the time was the Berlin-based Sapinda subsidiary. Vatas had shares in the airline company Air Berlin and also the internet service provider Freenet. The later purchase of additional Air Berlin shares resulted in the increase of Vatas Holding’s stake in the company to 18.6%.[6]

In approximately five years Sapinda processed investments to the value of more than 2 billion euros. Due to Windhorst the British investment fund Sapinda generated high rates of return and handled investments of more than one billion euros. During the global financial crisis the Sapinda Group, and in particular its German company VATAS Holding GmbH, sustained considerable losses. As a result of the global financial crisis in 2008, in the second half of the year the company started restructuring talks and in January 2009 the partners had to file for bankruptcy for the German subsidiary VATAS.[7] In April 2009 all business activities were restructured and the new parent company of the group became Sapinda Holding BV, which was founded in the year 2009 and is based in Amsterdam in the Netherlands. The biggest branch office is in London. The group also has offices in Europe, Africa and Asia, including in Berlin, Amsterdam, Johannesburg, Moscow and Hong Kong. The Sapinda Group employs a team of more than 80 employees worldwide.

Today Sapinda Holding B.V. is a globally active investment company, which invests its own capital in long-term strategic investments and maintains and manages financial shareholdings. Sapinda has majority stakes in the sectors of agricultural economy and food processing, mining/raw materials, oil and gas extraction and production. It also holds stakes in the media, technology and real estate sectors.

In 2009 the Sapinda Group made investments and transactions to the value of approx. 1 billion euros. According to information from German news magazine ‘Der Spiegel’, Lars Windhorst invests in Africa and for this he has established the company Amatheon Agri together with Carl Heinrich Bruhn.[8] According to Windhorst’s information, the Sapinda business organised investments of around 3.5 billion euros between 2009 and 2012, including loans for companies like Air Berlin and Infineon.[9] Sapinda’s partners include management consultant Roland Berger and the advisory board is managed by Dr. Hubertus von Grünberg, who is also the Chairman of the large Swiss corporation ABB Ltd.[10] Since 2009 Windhorst has been the Managing Director of Sapinda UK and since 2013 Chairman of Sapinda Holding B.V. and Chairman of the Executive Committee of the Sapinda Group, as well as a significant shareholder of the Sapinda Group.

Criminal Convictions and Accusations

In 2009, Windhorst stood trial on 35 charges of fraud, embezzlement and breach of trust in Berlin. After a plea-bargain, prosecutors agreed to drop the fraud charges if he paid a fine of €1million (£850,000), repaid €2.5million (£2.1million) to his alleged victim and admitted a breach of trust offence, for which he was given a one-year suspended prison sentence. Mr Windhorst’s admitted breach of trust involved siphoning off €800,000 (£683,000) of company money into one of his personal accounts.[11]

In 2010 Mr Windhorst also faced a civil suit by Alki Partners, an American hedge fund, which has filed papers in a Manhattan court alleging that he and others took part in a “fraudulent scheme” to “manipulate” the share price of Remote DX, a US company.[12]

Miscellaneous

In December 2007, shortly after Christmas, Windhorst was severely injured during a plane crash in Kazakhstan. One of the two pilots died when the plane hit a wall and exploded after leaving the runway following a fuel stop in Almaty. The second pilot and the flight attendant were also injured. The business flight on the aircraft (Bombardier Challenger 604) run by the company Jet Connection was on its way from Hannover to the Macau Special Administrative Region of China, which is 60 km away from Hong Kong. According to hospital reports, Windhorst, unlike the other passengers, was lucky to only sustain burns and injuries to his face and chest.

In March 2009 the public prosecutor’s office in Berlin pressed charges against Windhorst for fraud, embezzlement and several counts of insolvency offences.[13] At a hearing scheduled for 18 December 2009 the proceedings for these charges were discontinued.[14] Windhorst committed to paying a total of 3.5 million euros. The personal bankruptcy of Windhorst was concluded in summer 2007. According to an article in German news magazine Focus from 3 September 2007 the lawsuit of his joint creditor Ulrich Marseille was rejected by the German Federal Court of Justice in August 2007, meaning that Windhorst’s debts were cleared.

Engagements

From 1997 to 2002 Windhorst was a board member of the Mentor Foundation, a foundation under the patronage of Her Majesty The Queen of Sweden, which operates in close cooperation with the World Health Organisation (WHO).

Since 2011 Windhorst has been a supporter of the Schwarzkopf Foundation Young Europe. The foundation’s mission is to support the development of young people as politically-aware and responsible citizens by focussing on the strengthening of the European idea and pan-European understanding.

Since 2012 Windhorst has supported the Daniel Barenboim Foundation.

Serpentine Gallery

In addition to personalities including Michael R. Bloomberg, Windhorst is a founding patron of the Serpentine Sackler Gallery and member of the Council of Trustees of the Serpentine Gallery in London.[15] The gallery exhibits modern and contemporary art and is regarded as one of the most renowned in London. He is actively involved in modern art and the promotion of young artists.[16]

Sleek Magazine

In October 2013 Sleek Magazine is publishing the art supplement “A Visual Journey”. This was created in close partnership with the Sapinda Group. It will portray six young artists from all over the world and their work.

References

  1. ↑ Olympia-Stadt für Manager - London will erobert werden, Manager Magazin Online, July 31, 2012
  2. ↑ Verehrter Verlierer, Spiegel.de, August 20, 2012
  3. ↑ Teenage tycoon earns a place in German legend, The Independent, February 5, 1996
  4. ↑ Wunderkind Lars Windhorst am Potsdamer Platz eingezogen, BZ, October 10, 2000
  5. ↑ Und dann verlor ich das Bewusstsein, Sueddeutsche.de, May 17, 2010
  6. ↑ Windhorst-Firma erhöht Beteiligung an Air Berlin, Tagesspiegel.de, January 11, 2008
  7. ↑ Insolvenzantrag: Lars Windhorst scheitert mit Beteiligungsgesellschaft, Spiegel Online, January 29, 2009
  8. ↑ Ex-Vorzeigeunternehmer: Lars Windhorst feiert Comeback in Afrika, Spiegel Online, August 19, 2012
  9. ↑ Das Comeback des Lars Windhorst, Handelsblatt, February 24, 2010
  10. ↑ Lars Windhorst stellt Top-Gremium zusammen, Wirtschaftswoche, February 2, 2012
  11. ↑ http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/politics/conservative/7784393/Conservative-Party-took-10000-from-convicted-criminal-Lars-Windhorst.html
  12. ↑ http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/politics/conservative/7784393/Conservative-Party-took-10000-from-convicted-criminal-Lars-Windhorst.html
  13. ↑ Untreue-Vorwurf: Staatsanwälte klagen Unternehmer Lars Windhorst an, Spiegel Online, March 20, 2009
  14. ↑ Verfahren gegen Windhorst eingestellt, Die Welt, February 23, 2006
  15. ↑ New Serpentine Sackler Gallery opens as Michael Bloomberg steps in to be chairman, London Evening Standard, September 25, 2013
  16. ↑ Thank You|Serpentine Gallery

External links

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