Solomon Kerzner, born on the 23rd of August 1935, is a South African businessman and accountant, who became famous for his chains of hotels in various parts of the world. He is now the Chief Executive Officer of Kerzner International Holdings Limited.
So how much is Kerzner’s net worth? As of mid-2017, based on authoritative sources it is reported to be $400 million, acquired from his years acquiring and managing his hotels which began in the early 1960s.
Sol Kerzner Net Worth $400 Million
Born in Troyville, Johannesburg, Kerzner is the youngest of four children born to Russian Jewish immigrant parents. He attended University of the Witwatersrand in Johannesburg, from where he graduated with a degree in accountancy. Kerzner then qualified as a Chartered Accountant, and worked for a while in one of Durban’s largest accountancy firm. At just 25 years old, he became a junior partner at the firm but later on decided to help in his family’s chain of kosher hotels. His early years in the corporate world helped start his career in hotels and also his net worth.
Kerzner later on took over the family business, and became one of the most successful businessmen in South Africa. His career in hospitality began in the ‘60s when he purchased the Astra Hotel in Durban. After that, he purchased another property and named it the Beverly Hills Hotel, and made it into t South Africa’s first five star-graded hotel in. Soon came Elangeni Hotel that overlooks Durban’s beachfront with 450 rooms, before in 1969, he partnered with South African Breweries and started Southern Sun Hotels. His multiple hotels in South Africa tremendously raised his wealth.
In 1975, Kerzner expanded his hotel properties outside South Africa, and opened Le Saint Geran in Mauritius. In 1979, his properties totaled 30 hotels, and he added Sun City, one of his biggest and most ambitious projects in South Africa. Since its opening it has hosted a number of international artists, but also received various criticisms during the anti-apartheid campaign.
Other notable hotels under Kerzner include the Mohegan Sun casino in Uncasville, Connecticut, the Paradise Island Resort in The Bahamas, and One&Only Resorts that has seven franchises around the world. His various investments all over the world make up his net worth.
Today, he sits as the CEO of Kerzner International Holdings Limited that manages three hotel brands: the One&Only, Atlantis, and Mazagan.
In terms of his personal life, Kerzner has been married four times and has seven children; three of them are his biological children, while two are his step children. His first wife was Maureen Adler with whom he had three children. He then had two more children with his second wife, Shirley Bestbier, who died of suicide. In 1974, Kerzner remarried to Anneline Kriel, a former Miss World title holder, but the two divorced after five years. He once again married in 2000, to model Heather Murphy, but they ended up in divorce in 2011.
