Julian Ogilvie Thompson (born 1934 in Cape Town, South Africa) is a South African businessman and former chairman of De Beers and the Anglo American mining company.

Early life

Julian Ogilvie Thompson was born in 1934 in Cape Town, South Africa. His father,

Newton Ogilvie Thompson Newton Ogilvie Thompson (27 May 1904, Kentani, Cape Colony - 1 July 1992, Kenilworth, Cape Town) was a South African jurist who served as the 13th Chief Justice of South Africa, from 1971 to 1974. Early life and education Thompson was born i ...

, was a judge of

Supreme Court of Appeal of South Africa The Supreme Court of Appeal (SCA), formerly known as the Appellate Division, is an appellate court in South Africa. It is located in Bloemfontein, the "judicial capital" of South Africa. History On the creation of the Union of South Africa f ...

. Ogilvie Thompson was educated at

Diocesan College The Diocesan College (commonly known as Bishops) is a private, English medium, boarding and day high school for boys situated in the suburb of Rondebosch in Cape Town in the Western Cape province of South Africa. The school was established on ...

Cape Town Cape Town ( af, Kaapstad; , xh, iKapa) is one of South Africa's three capital cities, serving as the seat of the Parliament of South Africa. It is the legislative capital of the country, the oldest city in the country, and the second largest ...

and the

University of Oxford , mottoeng = The Lord is my light , established = , endowment = £6.1 billion (including colleges) (2019) , budget = £2.145 billion (2019–20) , chancellor ...

Career

Ogilvie Thompson became personal assistant to

Harry Oppenheimer Harry Frederick Oppenheimer (28 October 1908 – 19 August 2000) was a prominent South African businessman, industrialist and philanthropist. Oppenheimer was often ranked as one of the wealthiest people in the world, and was considered South A ...

in 1957, and he joined the Anglo American finance division in 1961. He went on to manage and head this division and also joined the De Beers board in 1966. Ogilvie Thompson was appointed as an executive director of Anglo American in 1971 and as a vice chairman of Barclays National Bank, former First National Bank, in 1977. He succeeded Harry Oppenheimer as chairman of

Minorco The Minorco SA (Minerals and Resources Company) was a mining company based in Luxembourg. It was set up by the South African Anglo American Corporation in 1987 to hold its non-African, non-diamond mining operations. Although Minorco was quoted on ...

in 1982 and as chairman of De Beers in 1985. He succeeded Gavin Relly as chairman of Anglo American in 1990 and retired as chairman of De Beers in 1997 to become non-executive deputy chairman. After leading the 1999 merger of Anglo American and Minorco, Ogilvie Thompson became its chairman and CEO. He was succeeded by Tony Trahar in 2000 but continued as non-executive chairman. He resigned as deputy chairman of De Beers in 2002, but continued to be a non-executive director. Ogilvie Thompson is a member of the Board of Trustees of the Mandela Rhodes Foundation. FortHareDeBeersArtGallery4

Personal life

Ogilvie Thompson married The Honourable Tessa Mary Brand, daughter of

Thomas Brand, 3rd Viscount Hampden Brigadier General Thomas Walter Brand, 3rd Viscount Hampden (29 January 1869 – 4 September 1958) was a British peer and soldier, the son of the 2nd Viscount Hampden. Education He was educated at Eton College and Trinity College, Cambridge. M ...

, in 1956. She died in 2020.Ogilvie Thompson
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References

External links

1934 births Alumni of Diocesan College, Cape Town Living people South African Rhodes Scholars South African businesspeople Alumni of Worcester College, Oxford {{SouthAfrica-business-bio-stub