Yiannis Latsis (September 14, 1910 – April 17, 2003), aka John Spyridon Latsis, was a Greek shipping tycoon notable for his great wealth, influential friends, and charitable activities.

Biography

Latsis was born in Katakolo — a fishing village in the Prefecture of Ilia — (although his origins are in Epirus), the seventh of 21 children.^[1] He was educated at the Pyrgos School of Commerce and the School for Merchant Navy Captains.^[2]

He started as a deckhand, eventually working his way up to ship's captain in the merchant marine.^[2] He bought his first cargo vessel in 1938 and by the 1960s, owned a fleet of ships.^[3] In the late 1960s, he diversified his business to include oil — establishing Petrola — and construction, building (among other things) oil refineries in Greece and Saudi Arabia,^[1][3] before gradually expanding into banking and financial services.^[3] His European Financial Group owns banks in the United Kingdom, Switzerland, Monaco, the Channel Islands and Greece.

In 1990, he hosted the G7 Economic Conference at Bridgewater House, Westminster, London.^[1] He was a close friend of Charles, Prince of Wales, twice loaning him the use of his yacht Alexandros, in 1991 for a second honeymoon with Diana, Princess of Wales and in 2002 for a cruise with Camilla Parker-Bowles.^[3] Others to whom he lent the ship included former President George H. W. Bush, Colin Powell, and Marlon Brando.^[3] He also maintained close ties with the Saudi royal family.^[3]

The year of his death, Forbes magazine ranked him 101st on its list of the world's richest people, with a fortune estimated at US $5.4 billion.^[3]

Business empire

The Latsis commercial empire has been closely involved with German firm Hochtief in both constructing and managing Spata airport. Through Hellenic Petroleum, one of Greece's largest oil companies ? in which another partner is the Russian oil giant LUKoil ? it holds the contract for all fuel supplies to the airport, through an EU-funded pipeline built by a Latsis engineering company. Hellenic Petroleum, according to its own accounts, in 2000, paid $612 million to acquire a 34 percent interest in the Athens Airport Fuel Pipeline Company.

A Latsis company also has a 50 percent stake in the huge contract for running most of the airport's "ground-handling" services ? almost everything except control of the aircraft themselves.

Latsis's development arm, Lamda, is a partner with Hochtief in a series of vast, part-EU funded motorway projects across Greece, as part of the "Trans European Network". And between 1999 and 2004, during the time when Spata airport was completed, the commission last week revealed that the giant EFG Eurobank Ergasias banking group, controlled by Latsis family interests, held an exclusive contract to handle all EU structural funds coming to Greece, totalling ?28 billion.

Charities

His charitable works began with the establishment of the Latsis Scholarships Institute in 1970^[2] and also included the provision of aid to earthquake victims^[3] and the creation of the Latsis Foundation.

Awards

He was awarded the Golden Cross from the Ecumenical Patriarchate of Constantinople and the Grand Cross of the Order of the Phoenix by Greece.^[1][2]

Personal life

Latsis married Erietta Tsoukala. They had three children: Spiros, Marianna and Margarita.^[2] Spiros is a trustee of the Friends of Europe, an EU-wide lobbying organisation for greater political integration. His grandson Paris Latsis (son of Marianna) was the former fiancé of Paris Hilton.

References

External links

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