William C. Rudin, co-executive chairman of Rudin Management, leads one of New York City’s most prominent real estate families, overseeing a major portfolio of office and residential properties across Manhattan. As a third-generation leader of the privately held firm founded in the 1920s, Rudin has guided the development and modernization of landmark buildings while expanding the company’s presence in commercial real estate and urban development. Known for long-term ownership and deep ties to New York’s civic and business institutions, he remains a central figure in the city’s real estate landscape.

William R. Berkley, founder and executive chairman of W. R. Berkley Corporation, built one of the largest and most consistently profitable commercial insurance groups in the United States through disciplined underwriting and decentralized management. Since founding the company in 1967, Berkley expanded it into a global specialty insurer operating across property, casualty, and reinsurance markets, emphasizing niche expertise and conservative risk selection. Known for long-term capital stewardship and a focus on underwriting margins over premium growth, he has remained a defining figure in modern insurance.

Tom Ford is a billionaire fashion icon and filmmaker who defined modern glamour at Gucci and his namesake house. After selling his brand to Estée Lauder for $2.8 billion, he returned to cinema in 2026 to direct Cry to Heaven, a self-financed adaptation of Anne Rice’s novel. Set in 18th-century Venice, the film features an all-star cast including Nicholas Hoult, Aaron Taylor-Johnson, and Adele in her acting debut. While Haider Ackermann now oversees the Ford fashion label’s "seductive dialogue," the man himself is focused on this lavish operatic vengeance tale. Currently filming in London and Rome, the project marks his third feature and his most ambitious creative pivot to date.

Stewart Rahr is the billionaire founder of Kinray, which he grew into the largest privately held pharmaceutical distributor in the world before its $1.3 billion sale to Cardinal Health in 2010. Known as the self-styled "Number One King of All Fun," Rahr is a permanent fixture in New York’s high-society and philanthropic circles. His Stewart J. Rahr Foundation has donated over $25 million to the Make-A-Wish Foundation alone, alongside significant contributions to cancer and medical research. A flamboyant figure with a reputation for grand charity galas and celebrity connections, he remains a central force in American philanthropy and land stewardship in the Hamptons.

Nicolas Berggruen, investor and philanthropist, built a global reputation as a contrarian thinker blending capital, policy, and long-term societal vision. Founder of Berggruen Holdings and the Berggruen Institute, he has invested across real estate, finance, and special situations while championing ideas around governance reform, technology, and globalization. Known for his unconventional lifestyle and intellectual focus, Berggruen has positioned himself less as a traditional financier and more as a patron of cross-disciplinary thought, convening global leaders to address structural challenges facing modern societies.

Mitchell Jacobson, cofounder and co-CEO of MSC Industrial Direct, helped build one of North America’s largest distributors of metalworking and maintenance supplies through disciplined execution, scale logistics, and a relentless focus on customer service. After joining the family-founded business, Jacobson oversaw its expansion from a catalog distributor into a technology-enabled industrial supplier serving manufacturers nationwide. Under his leadership, MSC grew into a multibillion-dollar public company known for operational efficiency, strong margins, and long-term shareholder alignment, while maintaining a conservative balance sheet and founder-led culture.

Leonard Stern, chairman and CEO of Hartz Mountain Industries, transformed his family’s small pet-supply enterprise into one of the largest privately held real estate empires in the United States. After taking over the business in the 1950s, he expanded Hartz Mountain into a diversified powerhouse spanning industrial properties, office buildings, hotels, and residential developments concentrated in the New York–New Jersey region. Known for long-term strategy, disciplined capital deployment, and a deep commitment to family ownership, Stern also stands out as a major philanthropist—supporting education, entrepreneurship, and the arts, including significant contributions to NYU’s Stern School of Business, named in his honor.

Larry Silverstein, chairman of Silverstein Properties, is one of New York’s most influential real estate developers, best known for rebuilding the World Trade Center site after the September 11 attacks. A major force in Manhattan commercial property since the 1970s, Silverstein has led the development of millions of square feet of office, residential, and mixed-use space, including icons such as 7 World Trade Center, 4 World Trade Center, and the soaring 3 World Trade Center. His combination of resilience, political navigation, and long-term vision turned tragedy into an unprecedented urban redevelopment effort, cementing Silverstein as a defining figure in modern New York real estate.

Joseph Steinberg, longtime chairman of Jefferies Financial Group and one of the most enduring dealmakers on Wall Street, helped guide the firm’s evolution from a diversified industrial holding company into a focused, modern financial services enterprise. Joining the predecessor company in the 1970s, Steinberg built a reputation for disciplined capital allocation, opportunistic acquisitions, and a value-driven investment philosophy that generated strong long-term returns. Over decades, he influenced Jefferies’ strategic direction, its expansion into investment banking and asset management, and oversaw major portfolio transformations. Known for his analytical rigor, understated leadership, and shareholder-oriented governance, Steinberg remains a defining figure in the firm’s history and a respected voice in American finance.

José Fanjul, vice chairman and president of Fanjul Corp, is one of the most powerful figures in the global sugar industry, helping lead the multibillion-dollar conglomerate that includes Florida Crystals, Domino Sugar, and extensive real estate and energy holdings. After the family’s exile from Cuba, Fanjul played a central role in rebuilding and expanding the business across the United States and the Caribbean, transforming it into a vertically integrated sugar and agribusiness giant. Known for his strategic political relationships, long-term operating vision, and deep philanthropic commitments—particularly in education and community development—Fanjul remains a defining force in American agribusiness and one of the most influential private industrialists in Florida.

John Paulson, founder of Paulson & Co., is one of the most storied figures in modern hedge fund history, best known for his legendary 2007 bet against subprime mortgages that generated profits of more than $15 billion and made him a symbol of prescient, contrarian investing. After building his firm on merger arbitrage and event-driven strategies, Paulson’s success in the financial crisis cemented his reputation as a master of timing and risk management. In recent years, he has shifted toward private investments and family-office operations while becoming a major philanthropist across healthcare, education, and the arts. Paulson’s rise from modest beginnings to one of the wealthiest hedge fund investors underscores the enduring power of disciplined conviction in global markets.

John Malone, chairman of Liberty Media, is one of the most influential and strategic dealmakers in media and telecommunications, credited with shaping the cable industry and modern pay-TV economics. Often called the “Cable Cowboy,” Malone built Tele-Communications Inc. into the largest U.S. cable operator before selling it to AT&T, then expanded Liberty Media into a sprawling portfolio spanning entertainment, sports, broadband, and satellite broadcasting. Known for his complex tax-efficient structures, minority control positions, and long-term compounding strategy, Malone has influenced everything from streaming competition to global sports ownership. His low-profile persona contrasts sharply with his outsized impact on the business of media.

John Catsimatidis, billionaire businessman and founder of the Red Apple Group, built a diversified empire spanning supermarkets, energy, real estate, and aviation. After immigrating to the United States from Greece as a child, he left college to take over a small grocery store and expanded it into the Gristedes supermarket chain, later branching into oil refining and fuel distribution through United Refining. Catsimatidis also became a major New York real estate developer, adding residential towers and mixed-use properties to his portfolio. A prominent political donor, radio host, and philanthropist, he remains one of New York’s most outspoken and influential entrepreneurial figures.

Jack Dorsey, tech entrepreneur and cofounder of Twitter and Block (formerly Square), has been a defining figure in the evolution of social media and digital finance. As Twitter’s cofounder and longtime CEO, he helped shape modern online communication, while at Block he revolutionized mobile payments and financial inclusion through technology. Known for his minimalist leadership style and focus on decentralization, Dorsey has increasingly turned his attention to Bitcoin and blockchain innovation, positioning himself at the intersection of technology, finance, and social change.

Israel Englander, billionaire hedge fund manager, is the founder and CEO of Millennium Management, one of the world’s largest and most successful multi-strategy hedge funds. Launching the firm in 1989 with $35 million, he has grown Millennium into a powerhouse managing more than $50 billion in assets, employing a decentralized model with hundreds of portfolio managers. Known for his risk management discipline and ability to adapt to shifting markets, Englander has built a reputation as one of the most influential figures in modern hedge fund investing.

Harry Macklowe, New York real estate developer and art collector, is known for bold, high-stakes deals that reshaped the Manhattan skyline. Founder of Macklowe Properties, he developed iconic projects such as 432 Park Avenue, one of the tallest residential towers in the Western Hemisphere. His career has been marked by both spectacular successes and dramatic setbacks, including a leveraged $7 billion office portfolio purchase in 2007. Beyond real estate, Macklowe gained global attention for his blue-chip art collection, reinforcing his image as one of New York’s most colorful and audacious moguls.

Chetan Dube is a pioneering AI entrepreneur who founded IPsoft (now Amelia) in 1998 and has been CEO ever since. With a PhD in theoretical computer science from NYU and early teaching roles at NYU, he spearheaded the creation of Amelia—the enterprise conversational AI platform used by major global firms. A multiple-patent holder and EY Entrepreneur of the Year honoree, he is now advancing next-generation agentic AI through his new venture, Quant.

Charles Zegar is an American technologist and billionaire investor who co-founded Bloomberg L.P. in 1982 alongside Michael Bloomberg, Tom Secunda, and Duncan MacMillan. As lead software architect, he built the original infrastructure for what became the Bloomberg Terminal—a core engine of global financial markets. Today he remains a discreet yet influential philanthropist through the Zegar Family Foundation. 

Boris Jordan is a Russian‑American entrepreneur and investor best known as the founder and Executive Chairman of Curaleaf, the U.S.’s leading cannabis company. He began his career in early 1990s Moscow, helping launch the Russian stock market, co-founded Renaissance Capital, led Gazprom Media and NTV, then built Sputnik Group before pivoting to cannabis in 2014.

Axel Stawski is an American billionaire real estate developer and founder of Stawski Partners, a New York City–based firm. A Holocaust survivor’s son with a PhD in international law, he has built a portfolio of Manhattan office buildings and luxury condos since 1973, including the notable 565 Fifth Avenue. His low-profile but focused approach continues to shape prime urban real estate.