Mohed Altrad
Montpellier, France
France
scaffolding, cement mixers, Self Made
$2,600,000,000
804
#838 Billionaires 2019
Mohed Altrad heads $4 billion (sales) Altrad Group, which provides construction and maintenance services. Altrad began life as an orphaned Bedouin in the Syrian desert. He was raised by his grandmother and attended school against her wishes. He eventually won himself a scholarship to study in France, where he earned undergraduate degrees in physics and math and a Ph.D. in computer science.After stints at tech firms and the Abu Dhabi National Oil Company, he bought a bankrupt scaffolding manufacturer in France with a partner in 1985.
When Altrad immigrated to France from Syria in 1969, he didn't speak French and survived on one meal a day. Altrad owns a majority stake in Montpellier Hérault Rugby and unsuccessfully attempted to buy a stake in Gloucester Rugby in the UK.
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