Andrew Beal Net Worth: $15 Billion
Category: Richest Business › Richest Billionaires
Birthdate: November 29, 1952 (71 years old)
Birthplace: Lansing, Michigan, USA
Gender: Male
Nationality: United States of America
Andrew Beal is an American banker, businessman, investor, poker player, and amateur mathematician. He has amassed his wealth in banking and real estate and is the founder and chairman of Beal Bank, Beal Bank USA, and other affiliated companies.
Early Life
Andrew Beal was born Daniel Andrew Beal on November 29, 1952, in Lansing, Michigan. His father was a mechanical engineer, and his mother worked for the state government. Beal has an older brother and a younger sister. As a teenager, he earned money by repairing and selling used TVs, installing security systems in apartments, managing rental properties, and running a house-moving business. He attended Lansing Sexton High School, where he was a member of the debate team, and later studied business administration at Michigan State University. He also attended Baylor University in Waco, Texas, but left before earning a degree.
Career
Beal started his real estate investment career at the age of 19 by purchasing a house in Lansing for $6,500 and renting it out for $119 per month. He went on to buy, renovate, and sell properties. In 1976, he purchased an apartment building in Waco for $217,500 and sold it for over $1 million three years later. In the early ’80s, he and a partner bought two housing project buildings in Newark, New Jersey, for $25,000 and sold them for $3.2 million after repairs.
In 1988, Beal opened Beal Bank in Dallas, which now has 19 branches and 21 Beal Bank USA branches. By the end of 2019, the combined assets of these banks exceeded $7 billion. Beal’s businesses include CSG Investments, Inc., CLG Hedge Fund, LLC, and Loan Acquisition Corporation.
Beal Aerospace
In 1997, Beal launched Beal Aerospace to build rockets and place communications satellites in orbit. The company operated with over 200 employees in a 163,000-square-foot space in Frisco, Texas. In March 2000, Beal Aerospace successfully tested the BA-810 Stage 2, the largest liquid rocket engine built since the ’60s. However, Beal closed the company in October 2000 after NASA announced its Space Launch Initiative, which involved funding and developing competing launch vehicles. Beal criticized NASA’s decision, stating it would compete directly with the private sector.
Personal Life
Beal has two children with his first wife, Susan Kaminski, and four children with his second wife, Simona, whom he married in 1996. Simona filed for divorce in 2010, seeking significant damages. Beal also has two children with Olya Sinitsyna. A libertarian, Beal endorsed Rand Paul in the 2016 presidential election and later Donald Trump, serving as an economic advisor to Trump’s campaign and donating to Trump-related causes.
Philanthropy
Beal is the title sponsor of the South Nevada Regional Science and Engineering Fair and the Dallas Regional Science and Engineering Fair through his banks. He donated $1 million to the Perot Museum of Nature and Science in Dallas and provided over 200 computers to the Dallas Independent School District for student use.
Real Estate
In 2016, Beal purchased a 27,092-square-foot home in Dallas, Texas, which had been on the market for $100 million. The property includes a library, bar, solarium, fitness room, 20-seat theater, wine room, guesthouse, recreation complex, outdoor kitchens, heated pool, spa, basketball court, and tennis courts. Beal listed the home for sale for $48.9 million in early 2017, and it was later auctioned off for $36.2 million.
