The three richest people in New Jersey
The Forbes 400 list of the richest people in the country is out, and three New Jersey residents make the list.
An immigrant who made a fortune
According to the list, the richest New Jerseyan is Rocco Commisso (who lives in Bergen County according to roi-nj.com.
He made his money through the cable company he founded, Mediacom. According to Forbes, he is worth $7.7 billion, but that is actually less than he was worth last year ($8.4 billion). He was estimated to be the 93rd wealthiest person in the US.
Commisso emigrated to the U.S. from Italy when he was 12 and his first job was playing the accordion during movie intermissions. He is a graduate of Columbia University, which named its soccer stadium for him. He lives in Saddle River.
Charitable math whiz
In 126th place on the list is John Overdeck of Millburn, described as the cofounder of Two Sigma, a quantitative investing powerhouse with $60 billion in assets under management.
Forbes estimates his net worth at $6.8 billion. According to Forbes, he is a former math prodigy and has given over $260 million to charity.
Major deal with Goldman Sachs
The third New Jersey resident on the list is Peter Kellogg, estimated to be worth $3.5 billion.
The Short Hills resident sold the brokerage firm Spear, Leeds, and Kellogg to Goldman Sachs for $6.5 billion in 2000. His father had been a partner in the firm and Peter later ran the firm.
According to Forbes, he has donated over $4 million to the U.S. ski and snowboarding teams.
Richest in America
If you’re wondering who the very richest Americans are, here is Forbes Top 5:
- Elon Musk $251 billion
- Jeff Bezos $151 billion
- Bill Gates $106 billion
- Larry Ellison $100 billion
- Warren Buffett $93 billion
Musk founded Tesla and Space X, Bezos founded Amazon, Gates founded Microsoft, Ellison co-founded Oracle, and Buffet is an investor (Berkshire Hathaway).
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