Edmond J. Safra ( ar, ادموند يعقوب صفرا; 6 August 1932 – 3 December 1999) was a Lebanese-Brazilian
banker who continued the family tradition of banking in Brazil and Switzerland. He was married to
Lily Watkins from 1976 until his death. He died in a fire that attracted wide media interest, and was judicially determined to be due to arson.
Biography
The Safra family came from
Beirut
Beirut, french: Beyrouth is the capital and largest city of Lebanon. , Greater Beirut has a population of 2.5 million, which makes it the third-largest city in the Levant region. The city is situated on a peninsula at the midpoint of ...
, Lebanon
and is of
Sephardic Jewish background originally from
Lebanon and
Aleppo
)), is an adjective which means "white-colored mixed with black".
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. Edmond's father,
Jacob Safra
Jacob Safra ( ar, يعقوب صفرا; 1891 – 27 May 1963) was a Syrian-Lebanese banker. The Safras were bankers and gold traders engaged in the financing of trade between Beirut, Aleppo, Istanbul and Alexandria.
Biography
The Safra family w ...
, had opened the J. E. Safra Bank in 1920 in
Beirut
Beirut, french: Beyrouth is the capital and largest city of Lebanon. , Greater Beirut has a population of 2.5 million, which makes it the third-largest city in the Levant region. The city is situated on a peninsula at the midpoint of ...
and in 1929 it became the Banque Jacob E. Safra which in 1956 changed its name to Banque de Credit National S.A.L. (BCN). By the time he was sixteen, Edmond Safra was working at his father's bank in Beirut, engaged in the precious metals and foreign exchange aspects of the business.
In 1949, the family moved from Lebanon to Italy, where he worked for a trading company in
Milan. When he was 16, he earned $40 million during arbitrage transactions between Italian and British gold sovereigns and used this money to obtain a financial house in Geneva which became his Trade Development Bank which used only ancient Arabic script for its bookkeeping. The family moved again in 1952, this time to Brazil, where Edmond Safra and his father founded their first Brazilian financial institution in 1955. He never made Israel his residence.
Career in banking
In 1956, Edmond Safra settled in Geneva to set up a private bank, the
Trade Development Bank, which grew from an original US$1 million to US$5 billion during the 1980s. He extended his financial empire to satisfy his wealthy clients from around the world. He also founded the
Republic National Bank of New York in 1966, and, later, Republic National Bank of New York (Suisse) in
Geneva. The Republic Bank operated 80 branches in the New York area, making it the number three branch network in the metropolitan region behind
Citigroup
Citigroup Inc. or Citi ( stylized as citi) is an American multinational investment bank and financial services corporation headquartered in New York City. The company was formed by the merger of banking giant Citicorp and financial conglomera ...
and
Chase Manhattan.
Safra's banking interests served clients in Monaco, Luxembourg and Switzerland.
From 1980 until Safra's death, Walter Weiner was Safra's attorney and CEO of Republic National Bank of New York and, in 1983, Weiner became chairman of the bank.
[
The sale of Trade Development Bank to American Express for more than US$450 million in 1983, turned into a legal battle between the two parties. The financier came out on top, winning a public apology from American Express for starting a smear campaign against him and US$8 million in damages, all of which he donated to charities.]
In 1988, he also founded Safra Republic Holdings S.A., a Luxembourg bank holding company.
By the early 1990s, Safra's fortune was an estimated at US$2.5 billion. He was a major philanthropist during his lifetime, and he left his wealth to the Edmond J. Safra Philanthropic Foundation which supports hundreds of projects in fifty countries around the world in the areas of education, science and medicine, religion, culture and humanitarian assistance.
In 1996 Safra co-founded Hermitage Capital Management with Beny Steinmetz and Bill Browder. The hedge fund became one of the most important investment companies in Russia and later became famous in connection with the Sergei Magnitsky
Sergei Leonidovich Magnitsky (russian: Сергeй Леонидович Магнитский, ; 8 April 1972 – 16 November 2009) was a Ukrainian-born Russian tax advisor responsible for exposing corruption and misconduct by Russian gover ...
affair.
On 17 August 1998, Safra's Republic National Bank of New York lost 45% of its net income due its large holding of Russian bonds after the 1998 Russian financial crisis
The Russian financial crisis (also called the ruble crisis or the Russian flu) began in Russia on 17 August 1998. It resulted in the Russian government and the Russian Central Bank devaluing the ruble and defaulting on its debt. The crisis had s ...
.[
In 1998, Safra's bank alerted the FBI and the Swiss justice about a possible money laundering scheme involving IMF money, the Republic National Bank of New York and the Republic National Bank of New York (Suisse), some other unidentified outlets, and Russian officials of both the Russian Ministry of Finance and the Russian Central Bank.]), Menatep (russian: Менатеп), Inkom (russian: Инком), and United Bank (russian: Объединенный банк), and the Russian Ministry of Finance transferred IMF loan money to foreign locations through Safra's Republic National Bank of New York. The IMF funds, which Italian newspaper ''la Repubblica
''la Repubblica'' (; the Republic) is an Italian daily general-interest newspaper. It was founded in 1976 in Rome by Gruppo Editoriale L'Espresso (now known as GEDI Gruppo Editoriale) and led by Eugenio Scalfari, Carlo Caracciolo and Arnold ...
'' estimated at $21.4 billion, are said to have caused the Russian financial crisis of 1998
The Russian financial crisis (also called the ruble crisis or the Russian flu) began in Russia on 17 August 1998. It resulted in the Russian government and the Russian Central Bank devaluing the ruble and defaulting on its debt. The crisis had ...
.), a Russian bank involved in the scheme of stealing the IMF funds, tipped off Safra in early autumn 1999 that he would be killed because he had assisted prosecutors, Safra moved from his villa Leopold at Antibes
Antibes (, also , ; oc, label= Provençal, Antíbol) is a coastal city in the Alpes-Maritimes department of southeastern France, on the Côte d'Azur between Cannes and Nice.
The town of Juan-les-Pins is in the commune of Antibes and the Soph ...
to a very secure bunker in Monaco where he died in December 1999 when two armed masked men entered Safra's 1000 square meter apartment and set fire to it while Safra, his wife, daughter and others in it.[ Safra succoumbed to smoke inhalation during the blaze.][ In March 1998, ]Alexander Litvinenko
Alexander Valterovich "Sasha" Litvinenko (30 August 1962 ( at WebCite) or 4 December 1962 – 23 November 2006) was a British-naturalised Russian defector and former officer of the Russian Federal Security Service (FSB) who specialised i ...
had been ordered to kill Berezovsky. According to Safra's bodyguards, in the summer of 1999, Safra traveled to Moscow staying for several days during which he met several high-ranking Russian Ministry of Finance officials, Berezovsky, and Roman Abramovich.[
]
Later life and death
As he approached his 60s, Safra divided his time between his homes in Monaco, Geneva, and New York City and the Villa Leopolda
The Villa La Leopolda is a large detached villa in Villefranche-sur-Mer, in the Alpes-Maritimes department on the French Riviera. The villa is situated in of grounds. The villa has had several notable owners including Gianni and Marella Agnelli, ...
on the French Riviera. Weakened by Parkinson's disease, he required nursing care.
On 2 December 1999, Edmond and Lily Safra gained Monegasque citizenship.[
In 1999, he sold his Safra Republic Holdings and Republic New York Corporation to HSBC for $10.3 billion in cash. On 31 December 1999, ]HSBC Private Bank
HSBC Global Private Banking is part of the Wealth and Personal Banking division within the HSBC Group (as of 2020, HSBC was the world's sixth largest bank by total assets and market capitalization) They provide award winning private banking ser ...
became the new name for Safra's former holdings.
In December 1999, Safra and nurse Vivian Torrente were suffocated by fumes in a fire deliberately lit at the billionaire's Monaco home, where he apparently felt so safe that he did not have his bodyguards stay the night. On the night of the fire, Daniel Serdet, the attorney general and chief prosecutor of Monaco, stated that Samuel Cohen, Safra's personal security chief, stated that no security guards were needed.
Safra's nurse Ted Maher
Theodore "Ted" Maher (born June 9, 1958) is a former Green Beret turned registered nurse who was convicted of arson in a 1999 fire that killed Edmond Safra and another nurse, Vivian Torrente, at Safra's Monaco penthouse apartment. In October 200 ...
was arrested under suspicion of starting the fire in order to gain attention "through a daring rescue", and then losing control unintentionally. He was convicted of the crime and sentenced to 10 years in prison.
Edmond Safra left 50% of his assets to several charities.
Philanthropic activities
Safra supported educational, religious, medical, cultural, and humanitarian causes and organizations around the world. The Edmond J. Safra Philanthropic Foundation carries on this work in his memory.
Emergency relief
In April 1992, the Syrian regime dropped the travel restrictions on Jews. Edmond Safra, whose family had old ties with the city of Aleppo
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, offered to transfer 4,500 Syrian Jews by plane and financed their settling in Brooklyn.
Supporting faith
Committed to his Jewish faith, he believed that constructing and renovating synagogues was important in places where there was a potential for a Jewish community to flourish, and synagogues around the world bearing his father's name testify to this commitment. Many of these were built in the world's major Jewish centers, but he also helped to build synagogues in more remote communities such as Manila and Kinshasa.
500 years after the last synagogue was built in Madrid he constructed a new one. He also helped to renovate and enlarge synagogues in Amsterdam, Istanbul, Naples, Budapest, Rhodes, and Vienna. He saved the oldest synagogue in France, in Clermont-Ferrand
Clermont-Ferrand (, ; ; oc, label= Auvergnat, Clarmont-Ferrand or Clharmou ; la, Augustonemetum) is a city and commune of France, in the Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes region, with a population of 146,734 (2018). Its metropolitan area (''aire d'attract ...
, from destruction by buying it for the community, and he contributed to the expansion of the Cannes
Cannes ( , , ; oc, Canas) is a city located on the French Riviera. It is a commune located in the Alpes-Maritimes department, and host city of the annual Cannes Film Festival, Midem, and Cannes Lions International Festival of Creativity. The ...
synagogue and Synagogue Beth El in Paris. He also helped refurbish synagogues in many small French cities including Évian, Annemasse
Annemasse (; Arpitan: ''Anemâsse'') is a commune in the Haute-Savoie department in the Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes region in Eastern France. Even though it covers a relatively small territory (4.98 km2 or 1.92 sq mi), it is Haute-Savoie's second ...
, and others. Among the synagogues is the Edmond J. Safra Synagogue in New York City.
In addition to supporting a number of synagogues in Israel, the tombs of Rabbi Meir Baal Haness and Rabbi Shimon Bar Yohai (2nd century CE) were especially important to him, and he was a generous supporter of these pilgrimage sites. For many years on Shavuot
(''Ḥag HaShavuot'' or ''Shavuos'')
, nickname = English: "Feast of Weeks"
, observedby = Jews and Samaritans
, type = Jewish and Samaritan
, begins = 6th day of Sivan (or the Sunday following the 6th day of Sivan in ...
eve, the anniversary of his father's death, he would pray at the tomb of Rabbi Meir until dawn.
Enhance healthcare and finance medical research
During his lifetime, Safra donated millions of dollars to provide treatment for the sick. Hospitals across the globe – the Hôpital Cantonal de Genève, the Hôpitaux de France, and countless institutions in the United States, for example – benefited from his generosity. He was one of the founders of Albert Einstein Hospital
The Hospital Israelita Albert Einstein (English: Albert Einstein Israelite Hospital) is a Brazilian hospital, located in the Morumbi district, on the south side of São Paulo. It is considered the best hospital in Latin America and is among th ...
in São Paulo, today one of South America's major medical centers. In Israel, he initiated the construction of the Edmond and Lily Safra Children's Hospital at the Tel Hashomer hospital complex.
In the area of medical research, he was a significant supporter of the Institut Pasteur
The Pasteur Institute (french: Institut Pasteur) is a French non-profit private foundation dedicated to the study of biology, micro-organisms, diseases, and vaccines. It is named after Louis Pasteur, who invented pasteurization and vaccine ...
in Paris, the Weizmann Institute
The Weizmann Institute of Science ( he, מכון ויצמן למדע ''Machon Vaitzman LeMada'') is a public research university in Rehovot, Israel, established in 1934, 14 years before the State of Israel. It differs from other Israeli u ...
in Israel, the Michael J. Fox Foundation for Parkinson's Research and a number of different centers studying specific diseases in France, the United States, and elsewhere around the world. He created the Edmond and Lily Safra Chair in Breast Cancer Research at Tulane University.
In France, the Edmond J. Safra Foundation financially supports Clinatec
Clinatec is a biomedical research center based at the Polygone Scientifique in Grenoble. Doctors, biologists and micro- and nanotechnology experts work side by side at the 6,000 m2 facility. Around a hundred researchers and employees work at the ...
.
Improve education
Safra believed higher education was essential for every young person in the modern world, even though he himself never attended university. He provided university scholarship funds for tens of thousands of needy students through the International Sephardic Education Foundation (ISEF), an institution he and his wife established in 1977 to support deserving Israeli students.
Safra also helped universities directly, often through the support of chairs and particular programs (such as Judaic Studies). For example, at Harvard University he endowed the Jacob E. Safra Professorship of Jewish History and Sephardic Civilization, and the Edmond J. Safra Center for Ethics; and he gave significant funds for the Robert F. Kennedy Visiting Professorship in Latin American Studies. At the University of Pennsylvania's Wharton School of Business, he created the Jacob E. Safra Professorship of International Banking and the Safra Business Research Center.
He was awarded Honorary Doctorates by the Hebrew University of Jerusalem
The Hebrew University of Jerusalem (HUJI; he, הַאוּנִיבֶרְסִיטָה הַעִבְרִית בִּירוּשָׁלַיִם) is a public university, public research university based in Jerusalem, Israel. Co-founded by Albert Einstein ...
and Yeshiva University (New York) (where he established the Jacob E. Safra Institute of Sephardic Studies) for his ongoing support of those institutions.
With respect to younger children's education, he was especially devoted to schools in the cities where he lived – for example, he founded Ecole Girsa, Geneva's first and largest Jewish school. He took great pride in founding the Beit Yaacov school in Bat Yam
Bat Yam ( he, בַּת יָם or ) is a city located on Israel's Mediterranean Sea coast, on the Central Coastal Plain just south of Tel Aviv. It is part of the Gush Dan metropolitan area and the Tel Aviv District. In 2020, it had a population o ...
. He was also one of the world's most significant benefactors of yeshivot (religious schools training young men to be rabbis, Jewish teachers, and judges), assisting numerous institutions worldwide.
Honors
Recognized for his philanthropy, Safra received a few official honors:
* Commandeur de l'Ordre des Arts et Lettres
The ''Ordre des Arts et des Lettres'' (Order of Arts and Letters) is an order of France established on 2 May 1957 by the Minister of Culture. Its supplementary status to the was confirmed by President Charles de Gaulle in 1963. Its purpose i ...
and Chevalier de la Légion d'Honneur
The National Order of the Legion of Honour (french: Ordre national de la Légion d'honneur), formerly the Royal Order of the Legion of Honour ('), is the highest French order of merit, both military and civil. Established in 1802 by Napoleon B ...
by the French government,
* Commander of the Order of Merit of the Grand Duchy of Luxembourg,Rapport d'activité de l'Etat, Gouvernement de Jean-Claude Junkcker
''Gouvernement du Luxembourg'', 1999.
* Commander of the Order of Rio Branco
The Order of Rio Branco (''Ordem de Rio Branco'') is an honorific order of Brazil instituted by decree 51.697 of February 5, 1963. It is named in honor of the Brazilian diplomat José Paranhos, Baron of Rio Branco.
The President of Brazil serve ...
by the government of Brazil.
Further reading: Biographies
* Daniel Gross, ''A Banker's Journey: How Edmond J. Safra Built a Global Financial Empire'', New York: Radius, 2022. .
* Bryan Burrough
Bryan Burrough (born August 13, 1961, in Tennessee) is an American author and correspondent for '' Vanity Fair''. He has written six books. Burrough was a reporter for ''The Wall Street Journal'' in Dallas, Texas, between 1983 and 1992. He h ...
, ''Vendetta: American Express and the Smearing of Edmond Safra'', New York: HarperCollins, 1992. .
Notes
References
External links
Edmond J. Safra Philanthropic Foundation
CBS News 48 Hours Mystery Murder in Monaco
Extensive Court TV coverage of Safra's death
Safra Synagogue Directory
{{DEFAULTSORT:Safra, Edmond
1932 births
1999 deaths
20th-century Sephardi Jews
Brazilian bankers
Brazilian billionaires
Brazilian expatriates in Monaco
Arson in Monaco
Brazilian expatriates in Switzerland
Brazilian Sephardi Jews
Brazilian people of Lebanese-Jewish descent
Brazilian people murdered abroad
Harvard University people
Jewish philanthropists
Lebanese emigrants to Brazil
Lebanese Jews
Mizrahi Jews
Naturalized citizens of Brazil
Businesspeople from Beirut
People with Parkinson's disease
Safra family
20th-century philanthropists
Lebanese bankers
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People murdered in Monaco
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