Enrique Bañuelos

Enrique Bañuelos is a Spanish billionaire. As of 2008 he is the 95th richest person in the world, with a net worth of $1.3 billion, a drop of $6.4 billion from the previous year's list. He founded the real estate company Astroc in 1995, and took the company public in May 2006. Bañuelos was the company chairman in 2007, when sales at Astroc were reported at $200 million. However, in July 2007 he resigned as chairman due to a financial scandal at the company that required earnings to be restated. Due to recent mergers, Bañuelos stake in Astroc has dropped from 50% to 31%, and will fall to 17% later this year when another corporate merger is finalized. The stock once traded as high as Eu 71.50 but recently dropped to Eu 3.06 as a result of the loss of investor confidence in the company.

He also has a 5% stake in Banco Sabadell, one of Spain's largest banks. He has a home in Valencia, his hometown and location of the company headquarters, but increasingly spends time in New York City. He supports the Valencian Institute for Modern Art, a center for cardiovascular research and a women's handball team. Bañuelos owns a private foundation committed to spreading knowledge of Spain's cultural heritage. To celebrate the opening of its New York office last year, foundation hosted a paella (Valencia's quintessential dish) feast in Central Park that fed 20,000 people. He is married with two children.

References

* [http://www.forbes.com/lists/2007/10/07billionaires_Enrique-Banuelos_SRH2.html www.forbes.com-The World's Billionaires (2007)]
* [http://www.forbes.com/lists/2008/10/billionaires08_Enrique-Banuelos_SRH2.html www.forbes.com-The World's Billionaires (2008)]
* [http://uk.reuters.com/article/rbssFinancialServicesAndRealEstateNews/idUKL0369853220080303 uk.reuters.com-Astroc posts 2007 loss after cutting goodwill]