What was David Koch's Net Worth?
David Koch was an American businessman who had a net worth of $58 billion at the time of his death in 2019. He earned his fortune as the co-owner of Koch Industries, of which he was a large shareholder along with older brother Charles Koch.
David Koch was born on May 3, 1940, in Wichita, Kansas. For many years, he served as one of the company's executive vice presidents. Koch Industries originally dealt solely in oil refining and chemicals but today the company has a wide range of interests from pollution control equipment and technologies; polymers and fibers; minerals; fertilizers; commodity trading and services; forest and consumer products; ranching. It also produces a wide variety of well-known brands, such as Stainmaster carpet, the Lycra brand of spandex fiber, Quilted Northern tissue and Dixie Cup. Koch Industries is the second-largest privately held company by revenue in the United States, behind Cargill.
David married Julia Flesher in 1996. They had three children together.
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Wealth at Death
David Koch died on August 23, 2019, at the age of 79. At the time of his death, David Koch's $58 billion net worth placed him tied (with his brother) in 8th place on the list of the richest people on the planet.
Philanthropy
During his life David Koch contributed hundreds of millions of dollars to charities such as Lincoln Center, Sloan Kettering, a fertility clinic at New York-Presbyterian Hospital and the American Museum of Natural History's David H. Koch Dinosaur Wing. The New York State Theater at Lincoln Center, home of the New York City Ballet, was renamed the David H. Koch Theater in 2008, following a gift of $100 million for the renovation of the theater. Condé Nast Portfolio once described David Koch as "one of the most generous but low-key philanthropists in America." David and his brother Charles have also been known to donate to political advocacy groups, including Americans for Prosperity and to political campaigns, mainly Republican. David Koch is a survivor of the US Air Flight 1493 crash in 1991.
(Photo by Dia Dipasupil/Getty Images for Lincoln Center)
David Koch Net Worth Details
At the time of his death, David Koch held a 42% stake in the second largest privately held company in the United States, Koch Industries, which has reported annual revenue of as high as $100 billion. He is invested in several companies including Georgia-Pacific, Invista, Flint Hills Resources, Koch Fertilizer, Koch Pipelines, Molex, and more. He also held a stake in his family's private equity fund Koch Equity Development, and had at least $2 billion worth of cash investments.
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Real Estate
Over two transactions, the first in 1989 and the second in 1991, David paid $4 million for two side-by-side mansions in Aspen. David's brother Charles owns a home directly across the street. Today this combined property is worth at least $20 million.
In 1992, four years prior to marrying Julia, David paid $7.5 million for a seven-bedroom mansion on Meadow Lane in Southampton, New York. Today this property is likely worth $40-50 million.
In 1998, David and Julia paid $10.5 million for a 1920s-era mansion called Villa el Sarmiento in Palm Beach, Florida. Today this property is potentially worth north of $70 million.
In 2004, Julia and David paid $17 million for an 18-room duplex co-op apartment at 740 Park Avenue. The seller at the time was the Japanese government, which had been using it as a residence for their United Nations representative. John D. Rockefeller, Jr. was a previous owner of the unit. In February 2022 Julia reportedly began quietly shopping the unit around at a minimum asking price of $60 million. There are only 30 units in the entire building at 740 Park Avenue. It has been referred to as "the richest building in the world."
In August 2018, Julia and David paid $40.25 million for a townhouse in New York City.
