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Ivan Glasenberg at International Economic Forum in St. Petersburg, Russia, 2016 (Image source: Shutterstock)
Ivan Glasenberg, the Swiss-based billionaire, has the largest stake in the commodity trading and mining company, Glencore (LON:GLEN). The company has international offices across the globe and is infamous for being one of the world’s biggest polluters.
Mr Glasenberg has been in the eye of public of late, after announcing he would retire as the CEO of Glencore in the first half of 2021. His successor will be Gary Nagle, who is currently the head of the coal department at Glencore.
During Mr Glasenberg’s reign, there have been many controversies about his business handling; how he got to the top of the business world, and how his company achieved an enormous success in the market.
What is Mr Glasenberg’s social and educational background?
Mr Glasenberg was born and grew up in Illovo, Johannesburg, South Africa. Born to a South African mother and a Lithuanian father, Mr Glasenberg grew up in a diverse six-member family.
He was enrolled in Hyde Park High School in 1974, where he completed his secondary education.
After graduating from the high school, Mr Glasenberg moved to the University of Witwatersrand, where he studied accounting. Mick Davis, a lecturer at the Wits, became a friend of Mr Glasenberg during his studies. Davis would play an important role in Mr Glasenberg’s life.
How did Mr Glasenberg and Mr Davis’s friendship end?
There was a shocking out-turn for the friendship of two friends after their companies merged. Mr Davis decided to take a frowned-upon step.
Mr Davis became the CEO of Xstrata, the resources group. As the pair showed similar interest within the business world, it decided to merge both its companies in 2012.
Consequently, Mr Davis would become the CEO of the new company, as Mr Glasenberg promised. However, that was not the case how the events turned out to be.
When the merger was finalised, Mr Glasenberg decided to prevent Mr Davis from becoming the head of the new business. Instead, he took the role himself, forcing Mr Davis to leave the company.
How did Mr Glasenberg get interested in trading commodities?
Once Mr Glasenberg left the University of Witwatersrand, he started working for Nexia Levitt Kirson firm, where his love for the commodities grew.
A man exporting candle wax from South America to Japan inspired Mr Glasenberg to start a business. He thought of it as an ‘unbelievable’ and a quick way to earn income, so he tried it himself.
How did Mr Glasenberg start working at Glencore?
Mr Glasenberg moved to New York to start commodity trading for a man named Marc Rich. It did not take too long for Mr Glasenberg to become one of the boss’s favourites, and he soon climbed to the top of the firm. Mr Rich sent Mr Glasenberg back to South Africa so he could work at coal deals.
However, Mr Rich was not familiar with the law. It was found that he made illegal trades with Iran, which put him on the FBI’s Most Wanted list. Even though he was among the most-wanted individuals in the world, former US President Bill Clinton pardoned him.
That was when Mr Glasenberg took over the charge and became the CEO of the firm in 2002. Together with his colleagues, Mr Glasenberg bought all shares that Mr Rich previously owned, and renamed the firm to Glencore.
Image Source: Shutterstock
Mr Glasenberg and Glencore
Ever since Mr Glasenberg became Glencore’s CEO, the commodity business has gone through many controversial stages, including corruption and money laundering allegations. Currently, the company is under investigation for the corruption charges.
As Glencore deals in mining business, it comes as no surprise that Glencore is one of the biggest polluters on the Earth. But before Mr Glasenberg announced his retirement, he promised to cut down CO2 emissions to zero by 2050.
Where is Mr Glasenberg today?
Mr Glasenberg will be the CEO of Glencore for a maximum of six months when his “mini-Ivan” will take over the role.
Currently, Mr Glasenberg’s net worth was estimated at US$4.6 billion by Forbes. The vast fortune put him on the 804th spot in the Billionaires 2020 list.
