The Oppenheimer family is an Anglo–South African family best known for its longtime control of Anglo American and De Beers. Ernest Oppenheimer, a German immigrant to Britain and later to South Africa, founded the Anglo American Corporation in 1917 to mine the Witwatersrand for gold. He took control of De Beers in 1929 and became its chairman the same year, followed by his son Harry Oppenheimer in 1957 and his grandson Nicky Oppenheimer in 1998.
In 2011, the family sold its remaining 40 per cent stake in De Beers to Anglo American for $5.1 billion in cash. By that time the family's equity in Anglo American had fallen below 2 per cent.
The Oppenheimer family residence is the Brenthurst Estate in Parktown, Johannesburg.
Family members
- Bernard Oppenheimer (1866–1921)
- Ernest Oppenheimer (1880–1957)
- Harry Oppenheimer (1908–2000)
- Mary Slack (born 1943)
- Nicky Oppenheimer (born 1945)
- Frank Leslie Oppenheimer (1910–1935)
- Harry Oppenheimer (1908–2000)
- Otto Oppenheimer (1882–1948)
- Philip Oppenheimer (1911–1995)
- Anthony Oppenheimer (born 1937)
- Philip Oppenheimer (1911–1995)
See also
References
- Pallister, David; Lepper, Ian (1988). South Africa Inc: The Oppenheimer Empire. Corgi Books. ISBN 978-0-552-13380-7.
- "Gold & Diamonds: Passing the Scepter". TIME. 12 February 1951. Retrieved 20 December 2024.
- Hocking, Anthony (1973). Oppenheimer and Son. McGraw-Hill. ISBN 978-0-07-091255-7.
- "Nicky Oppenheimer & family". Forbes. Retrieved 20 December 2024.
- "Anglo American buys Oppenheimer family stake in De Beers for $5.1 billion". The Telegraph. 4 November 2011. Archived from the original on 12 January 2022. Retrieved 10 October 2018.
- "Oppenheimers sell part of Anglo stake". News24. 14 December 2010. Retrieved 20 December 2024.