Business

Carlos Slim

Son of a Lebanese immigrant merchant in Mexico City; bought through crises and won Telmex.

Born: 1940 · Mexico City, Mexico
Roots: Mexican; Lebanese (Maronite) descent
Family: Affluent; His father emigrated from Lebanon at 14 and built a fortune in trade and Mexico City real estate.
Education: Civil engineering, UNAM
Started with: Family wealth; Taught ledgers and investing by his father; trading stocks as a teenager.
Affiliations & societies: None documented.; Information only — claims like these are often unverifiable and may be wrong.

The pathway

1952 · age 12
First shares
Buys stock in a Mexican bank, recording it in a ledger his father reviewed.
1965 · age 25
First acquisitions
Begins buying businesses; the group later becomes Grupo Carso.
1982 · age 42
Buys through the crisis
Acquires Mexican companies cheaply during debt-crisis capital flight.
1990 · age 50
Telmex
His consortium wins the privatized national telephone company.
2000 · age 60
América Móvil
Grows into Latin America's largest mobile carrier.
2010 · age 70
Ranked world's richest person
Per Forbes; holds the top spot for four years.

Sources

Compiled from these references and contemporaneous press reporting. Figures are approximate; verify before relying on them.