How Alex Soros, 37, won the battle to win control of father's empire trends now
George Soros's son Alex, 37, has been named as the heir to his father's $25 billion empire - but for a long time, insiders thought his older brother Jonathan, 53, was primed to take the reins.
In the last decade, George has gone from being a younger Soros heir known for hosting lavish parties in the Hamptons to his father's chosen one. Meanwhile, his older brother, a lawyer with a background in finance, faded largely from public view.
It's unclear exactly how and why the power shifted, but in his first interview since the new appointment, George told the Wall Street Journal that after a while he and Jonathan 'didn't get on'.
Jonathan, who is now removed from his father's affairs, said he was 'disappointed but not regretful' of the outcome, which will see Alex in control of his father's influential Open Society Foundation (OSF), a huge backer of liberal causes, and the rest of his empire.
George Soros (left) has said that his son Alex (right), 37, will take over both his Open Society Foundation and the rest of his $25 billion empire
Jonathan Soros (pictured in April), 53, is George's third-born son and was thought to be his heir for decades
The fight over control of the Soros empire is reminiscent of the TV 'Succession,' which saw a family fight for control of a media empire. The show featured the children scheming to run the company.
Alex will now control of the empire, once thought to be a 'long shot' to take over. He was once more known for his lifestyle than his activity in the political world.
In 2016, Alex was depicted in the media as a playboy billionaire scion. Jewish publication Forward wrote that year that he was ''shuttling models' to and from his $85 million summer rental home in the Hamptons.
Now the coverage is different. During the Journal, interview Alex claimed to be 'more political' than his father and outlined how he would sculpt his father's empire to champion issues like reproductive and voting rights.
Soros, a hedge fund manager turned philanthropist and major backer of liberal causes, was born in Hungary in 1930 and has five children with two women.
He made his fortune as a prominent hedge fund investor and notably made around $1billion after betting against the British pound in 1992.
Though the 92-year-old once said he did not want OSF to be handed over to one of his children, insiders have said they thought Jonathan was the likely heir, thanks in part to his age and experience.
George Soros has been repeatedly pictured with his new heir in recent months. The pair are pictured here in February
Jonathan Soros is one of his three children with Annaliese Soros, who split with George when Jonathan was around seven.
He studied at Wesleyan University in Connecticut and graduated in 1992, after which he worked at a Soros foundation office in Hungary.
He went on to get prestigious degrees in law and public policy at Harvard and then joined the Soros investment firm in 2002, The Wall Street Journal reported.
Jonathan, who is tall and athletic, would once play tennis with his father and helped to stabilize the Soros hedge
