Robert Hanson (financier)
The Hon. Robert William Hanson (born 3 October 1960) is a British financier and business man. He is chairman of Hanson Family Holdings, a private company which owns businesses in the fields of logistics, investment banking, news media, and chemicals.
Robert Hanson | |
|---|---|
| Born | October 3, 1960 |
| Alma mater | St Peter's College, Oxford |
| Occupation |
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| Spouse(s) | Masha Markova |
| Children | Max Hanson (born 2002) |
| Parent(s) | Lord Hanson |
Early life
Hanson is the elder son of James Hanson, by his marriage in 1959 to Geraldine Kaelin, an American. He had a younger brother, Brook Hanson (1964–2014).
Educated at Eton and St Peter's College, Oxford, Hanson's first job was as an assistant keeper of reptiles at the Windsor Safari Park.[1]
Career
In the 1980s, Hanson joined N M Rothschild & Sons, then went to work for his father, who was created a life peer in 1983.
At the end of 1997 Hanson resigned from his father's public company, when it was broken up, to become chairman of Hanson Transport Group. In 1998 he founded Hanson Capital, a group of financial services companies aiming to capitalise on his worldwide network of relationships with major investors. This continues as part of the present group of companies.[1]
Hanson is now the chairman of Hanson Family Holdings, a private company which owns a wide range of businesses in logistics, investment banking and chemicals around the world.[1]
In 2013, Hanson used Hanson Family Holdings to buy Venezuela's best-selling newspaper, Ultimas Noticias, for a figure reported as $US98 million. In 2014, he was accused by newspaper staff of turning it into "a Socialist Party mouthpiece", but the editor, Hector Davila, replied that his only instructions from Hanson were "to run a balanced and profitable newspaper".[2]
Private life
Once linked with Sophie Anderton, Tara Palmer-Tomkinson,[2] and a string of models, Hanson's name appeared in many gossip columns.[1]
He eventually married the Russian model Masha Markova, at the time half his age, and moved to Los Angeles. The engagement was reported in March 2010 as coming as a shock to London society,[3] and their son Max was born in October.[1]
Notes
- Profile - Robert Hanson: The happy family man steering Hanson empire into new territory in The Yorkshire Post dated 29 March 2011, accessed 11 May 2017
- Ian Burrell, 'Robert Hanson - his dad was Thatcher’s favourite tycoon, but now he’s accused of selling out Venezuelan newspaper to socialists' in The Independent online dated 16 November 2014, accessed 11 May 2017
- Tim Walker, Society shock as Lord Hanson’s eligible son Robert finally settles down in The Daily Telegraph dated 9 March 2010, accessed 12 May 2017