SUMMARY
- Sir James Arthur Ratcliff, was born on October 18, 1952, In Failsworth, Lancashire now known as (Greater Manchester)
- UK's second-richest person, Sir Jim Ratcliff has taken over 25% stake of Manchester United.
After a prolonged protest against the ownership of Glazers, Manchester United fans finally had a sigh of relief on December 20, 2023, when Sir Jim Ratcliffe’s 25 percent stake in the club was confirmed. However, the relevant documentation and approval from the Premier League committee still kept Manchester United fans waiting.
According to recent reports, the British billionaire has been given the green light by the Premier League for his proposed deal to buy a minority stake in the club. The approval allows the 71-year-old Sir Ratcliffe to become one of the owners of the club. Sir Jim Ratcliffe, who is the chairman of the INEOS group, will be making further amends in the coming days to shape up the future of the Red Devils.
🚨🔴 OFFICIAL: Premier League confirm Sir Jim Ratcliffe’s acquisition of 25% of Manchester United has been approved following the completion of the Owners and Directors Test.
“The Premier League’s Owners’ Charter has also been signed”. pic.twitter.com/GRiTXDRjv6
— Fabrizio Romano (@FabrizioRomano) February 13, 2024
Talking about the financial stability of the INEOS founder, it is reported that he has an astonishing net worth of around $20.6 billion. He is the second-richest person in the United Kingdom. As per the Forbes Lists of 2023, he is ranked 67th among all the richest people in the world. As of February 2024, Sir Jim Ratcliffe’s liquid assets, primarily consisting of cash and readily marketable securities, exceeded $4 billion.
How did Sir Jim Ratcliffe make his money?
From a chemical engineer to going on to become a billionaire, Sir Jim Ratcliffe has come a long way. Sir Jim Ratcliffe’s primary source of income comes from his majority ownership and chairmanship of the INEOS Group, a multinational chemicals company he founded in 1998. The INEOS group tends to operate in several segments from which they earn revenue.
INEOS’s core business is based on a wide range of chemicals. Other than chemicals, it produces shale gas in the United States, which primarily focuses on the Marcellus Shale formation.
👀 Sir Jim Ratcliffe’s INEOS currently owns:
•Nice in France’s Ligue 1
•Lausanne Sport in Switzerland’s top-flight.
•Part-own the Mercedes-AMG Petronas Formula 1 team
•Part-owner of Manchester UnitedHe has a net worth of $23.2 Billion 💰 pic.twitter.com/dsV9o7GxXO
— United & Everything Football (@ManUnitedBall) December 25, 2023
In addition to chemicals and shale gas, INEOS also acquired assets from BP and DEA. Because of these acquisitions into the oil industry, the company also owns and operates oil and gas production facilities in the North Sea, which is the Danish Underground Consortium, and also elsewhere.
Sir Jim Ratcliffe is also considered to be a sports lover. Other than soccer, he has a stake in Formula 1, where the INEOS group has been a principal partner of the Mercedes AMG F1 team since 2020.
Which soccer clubs does Sir Jim Ratcliffe own?
Because of his birth in the United Kingdom, Sir Jim Ratcliffe has been a fan of soccer since his early years. It is his immense passion for the game that sees him owning multiple soccer clubs across the globe.
He made his way into the soccer business when he owned FC Lausanne-Sport back in 2017. The FC Lausanne-Sport is a Swiss professional soccer club that features in the Swiss League, having been founded in the year 1896. However, his initial venture into the soccer market was met with setbacks because of a limited budget and transfer decisions that didn’t go as planned.
While results improved later, the experience acted as a learning curve for him. Later in 2019, the INEOS group made big strides and ended up buying French side OGC Nice. Since owning the side, heavy investments were made by Sir Jim during the initial years when the club secured the services of big names like Kasper Dolberg and Amine Gouiri.
📝 DEAL DONE: Britain’s richest man Sir Jim Ratcliffe has completed his takeover of OGC Nice for €100m. The biggest club acquisition deal in Ligue 1 history. (Source: @ogcnice) pic.twitter.com/CAg9JjTbGJ
— Transfer News Live (@DeadlineDayLive) August 26, 2019
After owning the club, Sir Jim Ratcliffe said, “We are absolutely delighted about acquiring OGC Nice. It has been quite a long journey getting here, but it is unique, and we were determined to complete the purchase of the club.”
He also owns Racing Club Abidjan, which features in the Ivory Coast Ligue 1 and is the partner club of OGC Nice and FC Lausanne-Sport. Last year, in December, Sir Jim Ratcliffe bought a minority stake in Manchester United after months of a bidding war with Sheikh Jassim. The British businessman bought a 25 percent stake in the English club and will look forward to bringing the 20-time league champions back to their glory days.
Sir Jim Ratcliffe’s companies and investments
Apart from having several business ventures in chemicals, sports, oil, and gas, Sir Jim Ratcliffe also has investments in media, automotive, and clothing brands.
In the automotive sector, the INEOS group has its own Automotive, which is based on Grenadier off-road vehicles. Sir Jim also owns ‘The Business’, which is a media group. He also has a clothing brand called ‘Belstaff’ that was founded in 1924.
Belstaff Owner Jim Ratcliffe Named the Richest Man in Britain https://t.co/FPMjSomVvP pic.twitter.com/vGQ1ShXuR5
— recatailing (@JurgenAmart) May 13, 2018
When it comes to past investments made by Sir Jim Ratcliffe, the names of newspaper groups called ‘The Courier’ and ‘West Highland Reporter’ will be there. These companies were once acquired by him and later sold. A few other stakes in companies called Vivergo and bio-ethanol plants were also later sold by him. Vivergo is an energy trading company that is currently owned by Associated British Foods and DuPont.
Houses, cars, yachts, and planes
The sky-high net worth of Sir Jim Ratcliffe allows him to lead a lavish style. The new Manchester United owner is reportedly said to have owned multiple properties. He has a $7.5 million mansion in Hampshire. He also owns a large mansion located in St. Jean-Cap Ferrat, France. The surroundings feature large gardens as well as a separate pool area. Built in the year 1715, it overlooks the Golfe de Saint-Hospice.
The 71-year-old owns a house in Chelsea, West London, near the Grenadier pub. He also owns a large mansion in Switzerland, which is near F1 star Michael Schumacher’s house. Talking about fancy cars, he has been spotted driving various Land Rover models, including the Defender and Discovery.
When it comes to yachts, he owns a 260-foot superyacht named Hampshire II and Sherpa. And as a matter of fact, both of the yachts were built by Feadship. Currently valued at $150 million, the Hampshire II has annual maintenance costs of approximately $15 million.
Sir Jim Ratcliffe owns a fleet of six aircraft, all registered to his company, Ineos. These include a Gulfstream G650 (registered as M-OVIE), a Gulfstream G550 (registered as M-USIC), two Gulfstream G280s (registered as M-ISTY and M-INTY), and a Dassault Falcon 2000EX (registered as M-CHEM). Additionally, he possesses an Agusta Westland AW139 helicopter with registration M-AJOR.
The Gulfstream G650 is unique in its way. One of the most luxurious and long-range business jets produced by Gulfstream Aerospace, it can fly at a maximum range of over 7,000 nautical miles. Thus, making it capable of flying non-stop from locations such as Hong Kong to New York.
Sir Jim Ratcliffe’s charities
Sir Jim Ratcliffe has his charity named after himself called ‘The Jim Ratcliffe Foundation’. Registered and established in 2016 in the United Kingdom, it works as a general charitable institution. The main focus of the charity is education, health, poverty relief, amateur sports, the environment, conservation, and heritage.
Other than this, the English billionaire established the charity “Go Run for Fun,” which organizes celebrity-driven events to encourage thousands of children aged between five and ten to be active. He also helped construct a new ski clubhouse in Courchevel for underprivileged children to learn skiing.
Off Piste
Sir Jim Ratcliffe’s charity is being investigated by the Charity Commission after helping fund a £16m luxury clubhouse for an exclusive French Alps club (where he and daughter ski) – “to investigate “concerns about the governance and management of his Foundation”. pic.twitter.com/BkOUMZBK3M
— Grouse Beater (@Grouse_Beater) January 16, 2023
A few years back, Sir Jim also donated a sum of $30 million to London Business School, from where he earned his MBA degree. The reason for this donation is because of the infrastructural development of the building in the years to come.
The INEOS group also has a charity known as the ‘Forgotten 40’. The initiative aims to promote a better standard of living for children growing up in some of the poorest parts of the United Kingdom.
Sir Jim Ratcliffe’s family and personal life
Born on October 18, 1952, Sir Jim Ratcliffe’s full name is Sir James Arthur Ratcliffe. He was born in Failsworth, Lancashire, which is now in Greater Manchester.
The OGC Nice owner has been married twice, with the first marriage falling apart in 1995. Ratcliffe was married to Amanda Townson from 1985 to 1995. The couple has two sons together, named George Ratcliffe and Samuel Ratcliffe.
Following his separation from Amanda Townson, Ratcliffe married Alicia Ratcliffe for the second time in the late 1990s. The couple is still said to be together and has a daughter named Julia.
FAQs
Who is the richest person in the UK?
As of February 2024, Indian businessman Gopichand Hinduja is the richest person in the United Kingdom. However, he is closely followed by INEOS Chairman Sir Jim Ratcliffe, who is second on the list.
What does INEOS stand for?
INEOS is not an acronym and, therefore, doesn’t have a full form. The name was chosen by the company’s founder, Sir Jim Ratcliffe, and combines parts of two previous company names, which are ‘INspec Ethylene Oxide and Specialities’ (an early business of INEOS) and ‘EOS’, the Greek goddess of dawn.
What is INEOS worth?
The INEOS Group which is the fourth-largest chemical company in the world generates a figure of around $65 billion in annual revenue. Other than this, it provides employment opportunities to over 26,000 people.