Vincent Tchenguiz
From Taighde
Vincent Tchenguiz is a property investor. He is the brother and partner of Robert Tchenguiz.
After completing his schooling in Tehran in 1973, Vincent attended Business Administration course at Boston University before obtaining a BSc Honours in Economics and a BSc in Commerce at McGill University, Montreal, in 1978. Vincent also has a Masters Degree in Business Administration (MBA) from New York University, which he completed in 1980.
Vincent is known to like big boats; while in Cannes for a conference he rented a yacht so large it had to be moored out at sea. He reportedly was the mystery buyer of a 1.2 million Euro 50-ft cigarette speedboat, the first ever of its kind. He already owns two other boats, dubbed by him as his "F*** Off" boats, named Foxtrot Oscar 1 and 2. He's also reportedly placed an order for a new £17 million Mangusta130 to be named Veni, Vidi, Vinci. However, there are whispers that Vincent has not paid all debts related to his boats; one company claims he has an outstanding account of more than 100,000 Euros; Vincent says this is a disputed bill.[1]
Vincent is single, and has been described as a "playboy." He has houses in Mayfair (along with an office), South Africa, and the Cote d'Azur. He also owns five Rolls-Royces, two Bentleys, an Aston Martin, and a Lamborghini.
A few years ago Vincent began betting on football, and in fact won £1 million on Greece's 2004 European Championship win. Even gambling is treated like a business, he acknowledges.
Investments
Vincent's interest in making money began at an early age in Tehran. He started collecting empty Coke bottles for the deposits, and soon moved up into more enterprising ventures, such as buying American chewing gum at American football games and selling it on the streets for more.
In the 1970s Vincent experienced losing money on his investments for the first time when he had an options portfolio that expired when the bull market ended. He convinced his father to give him $500,000, and then entered the futures, gold, and foreign exchange worlds.
In 1984 Vincent moved to London to take a position with Prudential Bache, and later Shearson Lehman, as a Senior Vice-President. As his brother Robert found success in the property business, his father Victor finally convinced Vincent to join him. They formed Rotch Property Group together and bought £4 billion worth of property in its first three years, with funding from £3.5 billion in debt. [2]
Prior to establishing Rotch Property and Consensus, Vincent worked for Prudential Bache, in London, as Senior Vice President within their fund management division, trading financial instruments. In 1986 Vincent joined Shearson Lehman Brothers, London, also as Senior Vice President in a similar role, trading financial instruments. In 1988 Vincent and his brother Robert set up Rotch Property Group, now a £4bn commercial property business where he is joint chairman and joint managing director. In 2001 Vincent spun off the Consensus Business Group to focus on his business interests outside commercial property.[[3]]
In November 2007 (at the same time his brother Robert saw his investment plans in Sainsbury's and Mitchells & Butlers collapse) Vincent announced that he was selling about £30 million worth of stakes in roughly 50 different small listed companies. He attributed the "selling down" to the current credit crunch, and said he is "repositioning" his business and "currently adjusting our business model and rationalising our portfolio to reduce our exposure to equity market risk." He denied that he is looking to sell stakes in his 40 or so investments in unlisted funds.
His investments include a 30% stake in Bramdean Alternatives, which he recently paid £40 million for; he may be looking for a buyer.
Vincent also maintains major interests in the Hilton Hotel chain (£500 million) and Tesco supermarkets (£500 million).[4]
Vincent claims to trade up to £750 million a day in currencies, futures, and bonds. He has revealed a recent interest in green, eco-friendly technology, though he says it's only "to make money." His fleet of gaz-guzzling luxury cars backs that up.
The Tchenguiz brothers are among the richest people in Britain.[5]
