- Charles Feeney is an Irish-American businessman and philanthropist
- He made his fortune as a co-founder of the Duty Free Shoppers Group
- He is also the founder of The Atlantic Philanthropies, one of the largest private charitable foundations in the world
- Find more facts about him below
| Real name: | Charles Francis Feeney | | Born: | 23 April 1931 Comment | | How old is Chuck Feeney in 2024? / Age: | 93 years
| | Where was Chuck Feeney born? | Elizabeth, New Jersey, U.S.A. | | Zodiac sign: | Taurus |
Chuck Feeney Net worth 2024 (estimated)
| | How much is Chuck Feeney worth? | $2,000,000
| | Nationality: | Irish-American | | Hair color: | Gray | | Eyes color: | Blue |
Who is Chuck Feeney? / Facts
- Early life and family - Feeney was born in New Jersey during the Great Depression and came from a modest background of blue collar Irish-American parents in Elizabeth, New Jersey.
His ancestry can be traced to County Fermanagh in Northern Ireland.
He was the first in his Irish-American immigrant family to attend college.
- Education - Feeney graduated from Elizabeth's St. Mary of the Assumption High School in 1949.
He has credited his charitable spirit to his education at St. Mary.
His 2016 donation of $250,000 was the largest in the school's history from a single contributor.
In 1952, with support from the G.I. Bil, Feeney enrolled in and later graduated from the Cornell University School of Hotel Administration, being a brother of Alpha Sigma Phi and honorary member of the Sphinx Head Society.
At Cornell, he began his entrepreneurial career, starting a sandwich business.
Following graduation, he traveled to Europe, enrolled in a graduate program in political science at the University Grenoble in France and started a summer camp for children of American military personnel.
- Korean War - He served as a U.S. Air Force radio operator during the Korean War, and began his career selling duty-free liquor to U.S. naval personnel at Mediterranean ports in the 1950s.
- Duty Free Shoppers Group - The concept of "duty-free shopping"—offering high-end concessions to travelers, free of import taxes—was in its infancy when Feeney and his college classmate Robert Warren Miller started selling duty-free liquor to American servicemen in Asia in the 1950s.
They founded the Duty Free Shoppers Group (DFS Group) on November 7, 1960, beginning operations in Hong Kong, later expanding to Europe and other continents.
Duty Free Shoppers soon became the largest seller of luxury goods in the world, expanding to off-airport duty-free stores and large downtown Galleria stores and became the world's largest travel retailer.
By the mid-1990s, DFS was distributing profits of up to $300 million a year to Feeney, Miller, and two smaller partners.
In 1996, Feeney sold his stakes in DFS to the French luxury conglomerate Louis Vuitton Moët Hennessy (LVMH) for $1.63 billion.
- Philanthropy - In 1982, Feeney created The Atlantic Philanthropies, and in 1984, secretly transferred his entire 38.75% stake in DFS, then worth about $500 million, to the foundation.
Not even his business partners knew that he no longer personally owned any part of DFS.
For years, Atlantic gave away money in secret, requiring recipients to not reveal the sources of their donations.
At its height, Atlantic had over 300 employees and 10 offices across the globe.
In February 2011, Feeney became a signatory to The Giving Pledge.
OVER THE COURSE OF HIS LIFE, FEENEY HAS GIVEN AWAY MORE THAN $8 BILLION.
As of 2016, he lived in a rented apartment in San Francisco, his own wealth being reduced to $2 million.
On September 14, 2020, Feeney closed down the Atlantic Philanthropies after the nonprofit accomplished its mission of giving away all of Feeney's money by 2020.
Feeney purposely limited the lifespan of The Atlantic Philanthropies so it would make a difference sooner rather than later.
- Awards - Feeney has been honored with a Forbes 400 Lifetime Achievement Award for Philanthropy and the Carnegie Medal of Philanthropy.
- Trivia - Feeney is known for his frugality, living in a rented apartment, not owning a car or a house, flying economy-class and wearing a $10 Casio F-91W watch.
Until he was 75, he traveled only in coach, and carried reading materials in a plastic bag.
- Personal life - Feeney has married twice.
His first wife, Danielle, is French.
They have four daughters, Juliette M. Feeney-Timsit, Caroleen A. Feeney, Diane V. Feeney, Leslie D. Feeney-Baily and one son, Patrick A. Feeney.
His second wife, Helga, is his former secretary.
Bio / wiki sources: Wikipedia, accounts on social media, content from our users.
Education
- St. Mary of the Assumption High School
- Cornell University
Quotes
I'm a competitive type of person, whether it's playing a game of basketball or playing business games.
I'm a shabby dresser.
When you've got the money, you spend it. When you've spent it all, let someone else get going and spend theirs.
There is nothing wrong with a big bet, if a big bet is a good bet.
I had one idea that never changed in my mind—that you should use your wealth to help people.
There has to be a balance in life. A balance of business, family, and the opportunity to learn and teach.
I believe strongly in 'giving while living.' I see little reason to delay giving when so much good can be achieved through supporting worthwhile causes today.
I’m happy when what I’m doing is helping people and unhappy when what I’m doing isn’t helping people.
I cannot think of a more personally rewarding and appropriate use of wealth than to give while one is living - to personally devote oneself to meaningful efforts to improve the human condition. More importantly, today's needs are so great and varied that intelligent philanthropic support and positive interventions can have greater value and impact today than if they are delayed when the needs are greater.
Chuck Feeney Social Media Accounts
Related celebs
Danielle Feeney, Helga Feeney,
Wiki & wealth sources: Wikipedia, TMDb, social media accounts, users content, wealth specialized websites
Last update: 27 October 2020
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Net worth: $2,000,000
