Robert F. Smith net worth
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What is Robert F. Smith’s net worth?
Robert F. Smith is an American businessman, entrepreneur, and philanthropist with a net worth of US$9 billion. Robert F. Smith is the richest black in the United States and one of the 125 richest people in the United States. In 2017, he became the first black person to sign the pledge oath. As an active philanthropist, he has acted quickly and donated most of his net assets. This article will detail his philanthropy later in this article.
As the founder, chairman and chief executive officer of Vista Equity Partners LLC, Robert earned his net worth. Vista Equity Partners was founded in 2000 and now controls more than US$50 billion in assets, with an average annual rate of return of more than 30% since its establishment. Vista is a leading global investment company founded in 2000. It focuses on companies in the software and technology fields, has achieved differentiation early on, and has achieved current success. Smith’s background as a chemical engineer greatly facilitated Vista’s early identification of software as a major investment market.
Smith received a bachelor’s degree in chemical engineering from Cornell University in 1985. During high school and college, Smith interned at Bell Labs. After Cornell University, Smith worked as an engineer at Goodyear Tire & Rubber Company until he left Kraft General Foods in 1988. Smith’s interest in finance led him to leave Kraft and enter the Columbia Business School of Columbia University, where he received an MBA and graduated with honors in 1994. Smith then worked in the M&A department of Goldman Sachs until his first venture in Vista in 2000.
America’s richest black
Robert F. Smith is currently the richest black man in the United States. For many years, he was the second richest black in the United States, second only to media mogul Oprah Winfrey. At that time, Oprah’s net worth of $3.3 billion exceeded Robert’s net worth of $2.5 billion. In March 2018, it was revealed that Smith’s net worth soared to US$4.5 billion, which was enough to make him the richest black man in the United States. At that time, almost no one had heard of Robert F. Smith. As of May 2019, Robert is worth 5 billion U.S. dollars, making him the second largest black man in the world after Nigerian oil giant Arico Dangote, which is worth 10 billion U.S. dollars.
early life
Robert F. Smith was born on December 1, 1962 in Denver, Colorado. He is a fourth-generation Colorado native. His parents were educators and received a doctorate in education in Smith’s childhood. Smith attended a school that abolished segregation. From the first grade, he took a bus through the city to a school with abundant resources. When he first came into contact with computers, Smith showed a talent for STEM learning in high school.
In the third grade of high school, Smith applied for an internship at Bell Labs, but was initially rejected. The problem is that the plan is only for junior and high school students. Smith is not afraid. For two weeks, he called the human resources director of Bell Labs every day. Then he cut his expenses and called every Monday for another five months. When an intern at MIT did not show up to start the internship in June, the director of human resources finally called him back and Smith got the job. During his internship at Bell Labs that summer, he developed a reliability test for operational amplifiers. Smith referred to this period as “the joy of problem-solving” in his 2019 speech at Morehouse College’s graduation ceremony. Smith described it as a formative experience that shaped his future career.
After earning a bachelor’s degree in chemical engineering from Cornell University, he found a job at Goodyear Tire and Rubber Company. From 1986 to 1992, he worked as a chemical engineer at Kraft. During Kraft, he obtained two European patents. Robert finally decided to return to school to study for an MBA. After obtaining an MBA from Columbia University, he was hired by Goldman Sachs. While at Goldman Sachs, he advised on technology M&A transactions worth US$50 billion.
(Photo by Stephen Lofkin/Getty Images for the Robert Kennedy Center for Justice and Human Rights)
Vista Equity Partner
As we mentioned earlier, Robert F. Smith founded Vista Equity Partners shortly after leaving Goldman Sachs in 2000. This private equity/venture investment company focuses on investing in technology and passive income software businesses. The company has offices in Austin, Texas, Chicago, New York, Oakland and San Francisco. At the time of writing, they manage more than $81 billion in assets, own more than 50 software companies, and have 65,000 employees worldwide. This number of employees makes Vista the world’s fourth largest enterprise software company after SAP, Oracle and Microsoft.
Vista’s investment strategy covers private equity, perpetual capital, credit and public equity. Vista hopes to invest in companies that are ready to expand its software and platform services to a wider audience. Vista is cooperating with their acquisitions by guiding sustainable growth when supporting their products.
Vista likes to buy software companies, which dominate the unique customer base who pays for software every month/year. The beauty of these businesses is that, in most cases, the skeleton of the software is written only once. Then it is regularly maintained through small patches and upgrades, but at the same time, these annual fees are continuously paid. A good example is the fitness platform MINDBODY. MINDBODY is a software that helps customers book courses and physiotherapy services in yoga studios, spas and gyms across the country. If you have ever used an iPad in a yoga studio or gym to take classes, then you are most likely using MINDBODY’s software. Studios/gym/spas love this software because it enables them to get professional services at a relatively low annual fee, and they never stop paying. Vista acquired MINDBODY in December 2018 for $1.9 billion.
Taxes
In October 2020, Robert agreed to pay $140 million to settle a four-year tax crime investigation. Smith was accused of evading taxes by using offshore accounts. As part of the settlement, the government agreed to drop the charges, but Robert had to admit wrongdoing. The $140 million settlement includes tax arrears, interest and fines. About 10 months before the settlement, federal prosecutors accused Robert of avoiding taxes on approximately $200 million in income transferred from Vista to several offshore companies.
(Photo by Michael Logisano/Getty Images)
personal life
From 1988 to 2017, Robert married Susanna McFedden. They shared three children together.
Since 2015, Robert has been married to former Playboy model Hope Dworaczyk. At the wedding, Hope wore a dress designed by Naeem Khan. When John Legend sang “The First Time”, she walked into Smith’s arms along the aisle. According to reports, the singer seal also performed at a ceremony held at Villa Cimbrone on Italy’s luxurious Amalfi Coast.
Hope is a playmate in April 2009 and a playmate in 2010. She and Robert have four children. Today, Hope is the founder and CEO of the skincare company MUTHA.
Charity
In May 2017, Robert signed the Donation Pledge-a charity campaign led by Warren Buffett and Bill Gates, which encouraged billionaires to donate most (at least 50%) of their wealth during their lifetime or after death. This commitment is not his commitment to charity, but an opportunity to set goals for himself and to inspire others.
Smith’s philanthropy currently aims at education equity, but his interests are wide-ranging. Founding director and president of Fund II Foundation, a non-profit funding organization. The organization has completed grants to fund STEM and music education, African American history, health, internships, and reserved access to green spaces and outdoor activities. Smith matched or increased donations through the Fund II Foundation, providing grants for interns, student freedom initiatives, the Sphinx, and other valuable groups.
In May 2019, in the graduation speech at Morehouse College, Robert F. Smith announced that he would repay all debts of the 2019 students.
Recently, Smith has been active in “one stock, one future.” A financial literacy campaign supported by the technology app Goalsetter aims to allow children and their families to invest in savings and plan for a better future. Smith is the chairman of the Student Freedom Initiative, a single-purpose non-profit project inspired by his Morehouse gift.
Smith won another number one when he became the first African-American to serve on the board of Carnegie Hall in 2016. Smith is a member of the Robert Kennedy Human Rights Committee and a member of the Cornell School of Engineering Council. Smith also serves on the supervisory committee of Columbia Business School and is a general board member of the Business Roundtable. He donated $20 million to the National Museum of African American History and Culture. He donated US$20 million to his alma mater, Cornell University, and also provided US$10 million in STEM scholarships for women and African American students. Smith also donated millions of dollars to various causes, from the Prostate Cancer Foundation and the National Park Foundation to DonorsChoose and others.
real estate
Robert and Hope own residences in Los Angeles, Florida, and New York City.
In 2018, they spent US$18 million to purchase a seaside mansion in Malibu. They are located in what is aptly called “Billionaires Beach,” and the house was listed for sale in November 2020 for $24.5 million. They sold the house at the exact sale price in January 2021.
They own a second home in Malibu, which was bought in 2016 from the real housewife star Yolanda Hadid for $19.5 million.
In 2018, they bought a residence in New York City-an apartment in Chelsea, for $59 million. The couple has since renovated the apartment extensively.
In November 2020, they spent US$48.2 million to purchase two homes in North Palm Beach.
- One is a large seaside mansion
- The other is a small house across the street.
- The sellers of these two houses are Rockstar Energy billionaire Russ Weiner. These houses are located in a waterfront gated community called Seminole Landing.
- These houses were built in 2014 by Tiger Woods’ ex-wife, Elin Nordegren. She sold them to Weiner in September 2020 for $32.9 million. That’s right. Weiner owned these houses for about a month and made a profit of $15 million. This is a video tour of the house:
