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Net Worth
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$12.90 bn
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Age
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58
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Source of Wealth
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Olayan Financing Company
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Marital Status
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Married with 3 daughter
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Orphaned at the age of six, Olayan had more humble beginnings than most of his business counterparts from the Kingdom. Olayan's rise to great wealth reflected his acumen, an ability to cross cultural barriers, as well as extraordinary timing.
Over a 55-year career as an independent businessman, he served as entrepreneur, investor and philanthropist. Under his guidance and leadership, the Olayan Group became both a leading diversified enterprise in Saudi Arabia and a major participant in global investing.
The story of his entrepreneurial journey begins in the town of Unayzah in north central Saudi Arabia. For centuries, the town had been a haven for caravans venturing across the Najd, Saudi Arabia's heartland. The merchant families of Unayzah had developed important trading links with the world outside central Arabia - the cities on the Red Sea and Persian Gulf coast, which had ties to Africa and Asia.
In 1918, Suliman Olayan was born into one of these merchant families. His father, Saleh, had recently returned from Medina, where he had been a spice trader. Suliman spent the first years of his life in his family's ancestral hometown.
This year marks the 65th anniversary of one of the most well-respected firms in the Gulf. The Olayan Group owns more than 50 companies, with hefty stakes in various multinationals and blue-chip names such as Credit Suisse, in which it upped its stake from 3.4 percent to 3.6 percent in 2009 Its multi-billion-dollar portfolio is spread over continents including North America, Europe, Asia and, of course, the Middle East.
Established in 1947, the Olayan Group began as a trucking concern. In 1954 its founder, Suleiman Olayan, launched General Trading Company (GTC), the group’s food and consumer distribution business and was instrumental in bringing commercial insurance to Saudi, founding Arab Commercial Enterprises — which went on to become the region’s largest insurance and reinsurance broker.
Suleiman, who died in 2002, played a key role in developing Saudi Arabia's earliest electrical power companies, and also founded the country's first public utility, the National Gas Company.In the 1960s, Suleiman extended his business empire, adding interests in paper, cold storage and meat processing, and the manufacturing of pipes and fittings. Suleiman is survived by his son Khaled and his three daughters - Hayat, Hutham and Lubna.
This year, the Olayan Group put its faith in the King Abdullah Economic City project by purchasing four plots of land on the gigantic site just north of Jeddah.
