The richest Czechs of 2024, new faces in the top five !
Forbes has published its annual ranking of the 100 richest Czechs and this year’s ranking brings several interesting changes. Although the top three positions have remained the same, Andrej Babiš, who has regularly ranked in the top five in previous years, has dropped to seventh place this year.
His position was taken by Radovan Vítek and Michal Strnad, who strengthened their position in the ranking. In addition, eleven Czech billionaires also appeared on the prestigious US list of dollar billionaires and the world’s richest people. Forbes estimates that their combined fortune amounts to about CZK 1.5 trillion. This growth reflects how successfully Czech business has prospered in recent years. Another indicator is the increase in the lower threshold of assets required for inclusion in the ranking, which this year is CZK 4 billion.
Renáta Kellnerová remains the richest Czech, and continues to control PPF Group, founded by her late husband Petr Kellner. Although under the rules of succession proceedings her assets should be divided among other heirs, PPF has agreed to publicly present all shareholders through Kellnerová. Thus, Forbes decided not to reduce her assets and valued them as a single entity. If the assets had been divided, Daniel Křetínský would have taken first place. However, PPF has experienced strong growth over the past year, achieving a net profit of EUR 1.45 billion, selling its operations in Indonesia and Vietnam and increasing its stake in InPost. In addition, it sold part of PPF Telecom Group for more than CZK 50 billion to Emirates Telecommunications Group. These transactions confirm that PPF continues to be one of the most successful and influential conglomerates not only in the Czech Republic but also globally.
Daniel Křetínský, who continues to expand his energy empire EPH, came second in the ranking. He generates billions in profits and his expansion continues, especially in foreign markets. Křetínský is currently negotiating the purchase of the British post office Royal Mail, which is awaiting approval from the British government. If successful, the acquisition will be the largest foreign investment ever made by a Czech company. Křetínský is also investing in the ecological transformation of his energy holding. It has issued its first green bonds and is modernising its power plants. In addition, he has entered the steel division of German giant ThyssenKrupp and French retail chain Casino, strengthening his position among Europe’s business elite. This dynamic growth shows that Křetínský is not only keeping up with the world’s top companies, but is also actively working to shift his business into greener and more sustainable technologies.
The third place in the ranking went to Karel Komárek, founder of KKCG. Komárek is mainly known for his involvement in the lottery industry, where his company Sazka is one of the most important players on the market. In addition to lotteries, Komárek invests in energy, real estate and modern technologies. He is currently focusing on expansion into the United States, where he wants to develop his lottery business. Komárek is also active in the renewable energy sector and is considering new projects in the green energy sector.
In fourth position is Pavel Tykač, who is expanding his energy group Sev.en Group. The company is the second largest electricity generator in the Czech Republic, but is facing increasing pressure from emission allowances and the rise of renewables. That’s why Tykač is directing his investments abroad, mainly to the United States and Australia, where he owns coal mines and power plants. This year, he also invested in a coal-fired power plant in Vietnam. Despite these challenging conditions, Tykač continues to strengthen his assets and diversify his investments, for example holding shares in Moneta Money Bank and ČEZ.
Fifth place went to Radovan Vitek, one of the most important real estate tycoons in Europe. His CPI Property Group focuses on real estate investments across Europe, mainly in the Central and Eastern part. Vitek has focused on selling hundreds of millions of euros worth of real estate this year to reduce his group’s debt. In the first half of the year alone, it sold €980 million worth of properties, with more sales planned to be completed in the coming months. Although his assets have fallen slightly, he has still managed to push Andrej Babis down the ranks.
Michal Strnad, who came in sixth place, focuses on the production of military equipment and investments in engineering through his CSG group. Strnad has risen significantly in the billionaire rankings this year, thanks to his group reporting a doubling of profits and expanding its activities abroad. His acquisitions in the defence sector and his recent interest in US munitions manufacturer Vista for more than $2 billion only confirm that his business has ambitions to grow in the coming years. Strnad also plans further expansions abroad and profit growth of another 100 percent.
Andrej Babiš, who dropped to seventh place this year, continues to run the Agrofert conglomerate, which brings together nearly two hundred companies in the chemical, agricultural and food industries. Agrofert recently celebrated its 30th anniversary, which Babiš marked with the acquisition of a division of Austrian chemical company Borealis. This acquisition secured Agrofert’s position as the second largest fertiliser producer in Europe. Despite this success, Babiš faces a decline in his fortune, partly due to the sale of some assets, including the media group Mafra and the chemist Synthesia.
Other prominent Czech entrepreneurs have also made the Forbes list, including Pavel Baudiš, co-founder of the antivirus company Avast, Jaromír Tesar, who specializes in hydropower, and Aleš Zavoral, founder of the largest Czech e-shop Alza.cz. These entrepreneurs continue to actively develop their businesses and contribute to the growth of the Czech economy on the international scene.
Photo source: www.pexels.com
Author of this article
WAS THIS ARTICLE HELPFUL?
Support us to keep up the good work and to provide you even better content. Your donations will be used to help students get access to quality content for free and pay our contributors’ salaries, who work hard to create this website content! Thank you for all your support!
OR CONTINUE READING