Edmond Safra
| Edmond Safra | |
|---|---|
| Born |
Edmond J. Safra 6 August 1932 Beirut, Lebanon |
| Died | 3 December 1999 (aged 67) Monaco |
| Nationality | Brazilian |
| Occupation | Banker |
| Net worth | US$2.5 billion |
| Spouse(s) | Lily Watkins (m. 1976; death 1999) |
| Parent(s) |
Jacob Safra Esther Safra |
| Relatives |
Joseph Safra (brother) Moise Safra (brother) |
Edmond J. Safra (Arabic: ادموند يعقوب صفرا; 6 August 1932 – 3 December 1999) was a Lebanese Brazilian Jewish banker who continued the family tradition of banking in Syria, Lebanon, Brazil and Switzerland. He was married to Lily Watkins from 1976 until his death. He died in a fire that attracted wide media interest and was judicially determined to be due to arson.
The Safra family is an Arab Jewish family from Aleppo, Syria. The Safras were engaged in the financing of trade between Aleppo, Istanbul and Alexandria. His father, Jacob Safra, had opened the J. E. Safra Bank in 1920. By the time he was sixteen, Edmond Safra was working at his father's bank and was engaged in the precious metals and foreign exchange aspects of the business.
In 1949, the family moved to Italy, where he worked for a trading company in Milan. The family moved again in 1952, this time to Brazil, Edmond Safra and his father founded their first Brazilian financial institution in 1955.
In 1956, Edmond Safra settled in Geneva to set up a private bank, the Trade Development Bank, which grew from an original US$1 million to US$5 billion during the 1980s. He extended his financial empire to satisfy his wealthy clients from around the world. He also founded the Republic National Bank of New York in 1966, and, later, Republic National Bank of New York (Suisse) in Geneva. Republic bank operated 80 branches in the New York area, making it the number three branch network in the metropolitan region behind Citigroup and Chase Manhattan.
The sale of Trade Development Bank to American Express for more than US$450 million in 1983, turned into a legal battle between the two parties. The financier came out on top, winning a public apology from American Express for starting a smear campaign against him and US$8 million in damages, all of which he donated to charities.
In 1988, he also founded Safra Republic Holdings S.A., a Luxembourg bank holding company.
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