March 01--Ken Griffin's divorce settlement may have captured the headlines, but it hasn't put a dent in his wealth, which has increased by $1 billion over the last year and by $500 million since September, according to Forbes magazine.
Illinois' richest resident is the 157th richest person in the world with a net worth of $7.5 billion, according to Forbes, which on Tuesday released its annual ranking of global billionaires. The Citadel hedge fund founder, 47, has been splashing around his cash in recent months, purchasing a pair of artworks by Jackson Pollock and Willem de Kooning for $500 million and a series of ultra-high-end properties in Miami, New York and Chicago.
But spare a thought for the state's richest family, the Pritzkers, who are having a bad spell, losing a combined $850 million since the magazine produced its last list, of the U.S.' wealthiest people, six months ago. J.B. Pritzker saw his personal wealth plummet by $200 million to $3.2 billion, while Tom Pritzker fell by $300 million to $2.7 billion, Penny Pritzker fell by $100 million to $2.3 billion, Gigi Pritzker fell by $200 million to $2.1 billion and Jennifer Pritzker dropped $50 million to $1.7 billion, according to Forbes. Nicholas Pritzker, whose relatively puny $1.4 billion fortune wasn't big enough to make the list of the 400 richest Americans in September, lost $100 million over the year, the magazine estimates.
It was a bad six months for Illinois billionaires in general. Real estate mogul and former Chicago Tribune owner Sam Zell, 74, remains the state's second-richest resident, but saw his wealth drop by $100 million to $4.8 billion, according to the list. The state's third-richest resident, Walton Street Capital founder Neil Bluhm, 78, lost $100 million to fall to $3.4 billion, Forbes said.
Apart from Griffin, the only two Illinois billionaires to see their wealth grow over the last six months were eccentric Beanie Baby inventor and convicted tax cheat Ty Warner, and Chicago's chicken king, meat-processing giant Joseph Grendys. Warner's wealth grew by $100 million to $2.4 billion, while Grendys also gained $100 million to reach $1.9 billion.
Microsoft founder Bill Gates remains the world's richest person, with an estimated fortune of $75.8 billion.
Facebook's Mark Zuckerberg was the biggest earner during the year. He added $11.2 billion to his net worth, moving up 10 places to become the world's sixth-richest person with an estimated fortune of $44.6 billion, according to Forbes.
kjanssen@tribpub.com
