15 Facts About Bernard Arnault: The Richest Man In The World

Curious to know some interesting facts about Bernard Arnault – the richest man in the world as of 2022?

French businessman Bernard Arnault was born Bernard Jean Etienne Arnault in Roubaix, France, on the 5th of March, 1949. Already renowned for being the chairman of the French luxury fashion giant LVMH Moët Hennessy Louis Vuitton SA, he has become even more famous today as the man who relegated Elon Musk to second place in Forbes’ list of the richest people in the world.

But who exactly is Bernard Arnault? Let’s find out in this list of interesting facts about the man.

15 Interesting Facts About Bernard Arnault: The Richest Man In The World as of 2022

Here are some of the most interesting facts to know about the world’s richest man, Bernard Arnault.

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1. Bernard Arnault has been the richest man in France for years.

With a net worth of almost 200 billion, he is definitely the richest Frenchman on earth, a record he has held for quite a while now. And there’s no kicking him out of his spot anytime soon.

2. In 1999, Arnault became the richest person in the fashion industry.

April 1999 saw Bernard Arnault topping Spanish billionaire Amancio Ortega of Zara, becoming the richest person in fashion. This spot is still owned by Arnault after more than 20 years.

In July of the same year (1999), he became the world’s second-wealthiest man with a net worth of 103 billion USD, briefly surpassing Jeff Bezos at the end of that year – a feat he repeated at the beginning of the year 2020.

3. In December 2022, Arnault became the first European to top the list of the world’s richest people.

When Forbes released a list of the world’s richest people in December of 2022, the Internet exploded and went into a frenzy.

Frenchman Bernard Arnault ousted Tesla and SpaceX’s  Elon Musk for the first time as the richest man on earth with his whopping net worth of $187.3 billion as of writing, which makes him over 10 billion richer than Musk’s. This is thanks to the plummeting share price of Tesla.

Indian billionaire industrialist Gautam Adani has landed on third place and Amazon’s Jeff Bezos on fourth. American businessman and investor Warren Buffet and Microsoft’s Bill Gates take the fifth and sixth place, respectively.

4. Arnault’s first job was in construction.

Now don’t be shocked. His boss was his own dad who owned the Ferret-Savinel, a construction firm.

Bernard Arnault graduated with a degree in Engineering in 1971 from École Polytechnique in Palaiseau, a district in the southern suburbs of the French capital.

The company later became known as Ferinel Inc. and focused on real estate. It was eventually sold and today it is known as Nexity.

5. Arnault was dubbed “The Terminator.”

In 1984, Arnault bought the textile and retail conglomerate, Boussac Saint-Frères, a bankrupt company that owned the Christian Dior brand.

Within two years upon taking control of the empire, Arnault fired 9,000 workers, which garnered him the nickname “The Terminator.”

Bernard Arnault then sold the Boussac Saint-Frères, but he kept Christian Dior along with the Le Bon Marche department store that the company also owned.

6. Arnault has been chairman and CEO of LVMH since 1989.

Arnault purchased a controlling share in LVMH in 1989, which amounted to $2.6 billion. He became chairman and CEO of the company and never stepped down since.

As of this writing, Louis Vuitton’s net worth is $381.37 billion.

7. Bernard Arnault and his wife are avid art collectors.

Arnault is widely known for his contemporary art collection, which includes works created by Andy Warhol, Pablo Picasso, Henry Moore, Gerhard Richter, Pierre Huyghe, Christian Boltanski, Jean-Michel Basquiat, Yves Klein, and Damien Hirst.

His first auction purchase, however, was Claude Monet’s painting of the Charing Cross Bridge.

If you want to see these fantastic art pieces, they are on display at the Fondation Louis Vuitton, an art museum and cultural center constructed in 2006 to house the art collection owned by Arnault and his wife, as well as a tribute to the creation of contemporary art. It was completed and opened in 2014.

Arnault was also the one responsible for establishing LVMH as a huge patron of art in France.

8. Bernard Arnault donated 200 million EUR for the repairs of Notre Dame Cathedral in 2019.

On April 15, 2019, a fire broke out beneath the roof of the Notre Dame Cathedral, causing its spire to collapse and a major portion of the roof to be destroyed. The cathedral’s upper walls were severely damaged as well.

The French billionaire donated 200 million euros – or around 226 million USD – for the repairs of the famous Paris landmark. The donation was done through LVMH.

9. Arnault plays the piano.

Arnault’s wife, Hélène Mercier, is an accomplished pianist born in Montreal, Canada.

Arnault plays the piano, too. In fact, he was even classically trained in the instrument. He used this talent to woo the Canadian pianist, who became his wife in 1991.

His favorite composer is Frederic Chopin.

10. He owns a yacht called Symphony.

Symphony is a 333-foot yacht built in Aalsmeer, the Netherlands, by the Dutch yacht builder Feadship.

Feadship is the same shipyard that designed and built other famous luxury superyachts such as Aquarius a.k.a. Camila, owned by American real estate developer Steve Wynn; Savannah, owned by Swedish-Canadian chairman of Lundin Mining, Lukas Lundin; and Venus, owned by Steve Jobs’ wife, Laurene.

11. He requested for Belgian citizenship but soon decided against it.

Bernard Arnault considered moving to Belgium and planned to apply for Belgian citizenship in 2013. However, due to allegations of possible tax evasion, he immediately abandoned the plan, claiming he never intended to leave France.

12. LVMH sold its private jet after its flights began to be tracked by a Twitter user.

LVMH sold its private jet – a Bombardier Global 7500 – in October 2022, following the discovery of a Twitter user tracking its flights. Arnault now rents private aircraft for his personal and business flights to keep his whereabouts hidden from the public.

13. Arnault owns a $35-million “secret island” in the Bahamas.

Valued at $35 million USD, Arnault’s island in the Bahamas is accessible solely through invitation. It is said to be just one of his various tropical getaways.

The property is hidden in the Bahamas’ Exuma Cays. Its size is 135 acres and is called Indigo Island.

While it is totally closed off to the public, it is said that the island offers retreats for the filthy rich who can afford a weekly rent of $300,000 USD. Tyler Perry and Johnny Depp are rumored to be among the island’s secret clientele.

14. Arnault is friends with French President Emmanuel Macron and the First Lady.

Arnault is a huge supporter of French President Emmanuel Macron. The First Lady of France, Brigitte Macron, was a teacher to Arnault’s sons Frédéric and Jean when they attended the Lycée Saint-Louis-de-Gonzague, a Jesuit school in the 16th arrondissement of Paris deemed to be the most prestigious private school in France.

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15. Arnault has been married twice and has 5 children.

Bernard Arnault has 5 children. Delphine and Antoine are his children from his first marriage. Alexandre, Frédéric, and Jean are his sons with Hélène Mercier.

All of Arnault’s children have official roles in the brands he controls, including Tiffany & Co, TAG Heuer, and Louis Vuitton.