Raffaello Follieri is a former real estate dealer from Italy. He currently works as the CEO for Follieri Energy Group, FHolding UAE, and Follieri Capital Ltd.
He was involved in the Vati-Con affair and went to jail for four and a half years. He has a net worth of approximately $120 million.
| Name | Raffaello Follieri |
|---|---|
| Date of Birth: | June 28th, 1978 (44 years old) |
| Place of Birth: | Puglia, Italy |
| Height: | 5 feet 10 inches (1.78 meters) |
| Profession: | Real estate agent, con-artist, CEO |
| Marital Status: | Married |
| Children: | 2 |
| Parents: | Pasquale Follieri (father), Anna Follieri (mother) |
| Net Worth Estimate: | $120 million |
Net Worth
Follieri’s exact net worth is unknown. However, it is speculated to be approximately $120 million.
Follieri’s net worth comes primarily from his work as a real estate agent. He worked as a major agent for the Follieri Group, of which his father is the president.
However, he falsely presented himself with connections with the Vatican and the Catholic Church. This eventually led to Follieri being charged with defrauding investors.
From court cases, it is evident that Follieri conned approximately $2 million from his victims. He was jailed for four and a half years.
Additionally, Follieri is the owner and CEO of the Follieri Energy Group. This energy company focuses on renewable sources and currently has dealings across the Middle East and Southern Europe.
According to sources, the company has a net worth of approximately $180 million.
Follieri is the CEO of Follieri Capital LTD. In 2021, the company reported total assets of £15,301, or approximately $18,373.
Before becoming the CEO of his own companies, Follieri worked at EFFE Holdings, which was a company established by his family. The company folded two years after being established.
Company
Follieri is the CEO of several companies, including Follieri Capital, Follieri Energy Group, Follieri Yucaipa Investment, and the Follieri Foundation.
Follieri founded Beauty Planet with his father in the late 1990s. The company created “mass market hair and beauty carafe products.”
Although Follieri later claimed that the company was successful, accounting records indicate this was not the case. The company consistently worked at a loss and had approximately $50,000 worth of bad cheques.
It stayed relatively small and struggled to make any substantial sales. Eventually, Follieri declared the company bankrupt in 2002.
Follieri later became the director for EFFE Holdings, a company that worked as a “privately held investment firm,” which he formed in 2002.
However, similar to Beauty Planet, the company folded in the UK two years later due to poor sales. According to Follieri, the company still operates in Luxembourg.
In 2003, Follieri created the Follieri Group, which was a real estate group based in New York.
The company attracted several investors, including the billionaire Ron Burkle who invested $105 million in the group as part of a joint venture.
Former president Bill Clinton agreed to invest in the company through Yucaipa for $100 million. Michael Cooper, the chief executive for Dundee Realty Corporation, also invested several million dollars in the company.
However, Burke later filed a lawsuit for mismanaging his investment. A PR company in Washington also followed suit, suing the Follieri Group for $250,000 and the Yucaipa company, which sued the group for $1.3 million.
Eventually, criminal charges were brought against Follieri, and he was arrested, leading to the closure of the Follieri Group.
Follieri formed the Follieri Energy Group in 2012
An exact valuation of the company is unknown, although Follieri has claimed that it will be listed on the London Stock Exchange shortly. According to reports, the company has 162 tankers, which equate to a net worth of approximately $179,739,750 in 2021.
Follieri also formed Follieri Capital LTD in the same year. The company reported no earnings until 2021 when it claimed to have £15,301 in assets, which is approximately $18,327. Follieri is also the CEO of FHolding UAE, which is the parent company for many of these businesses. This company has been valued at several billions of dollars and has a number of subsidiaries.
Earnings
An exact figure of Follieri’s salary whilst working for these various companies is unknown. However, during this time, Follieri was staying in an apartment with a rent of $37,000. This suggests that his monthly salary far exceeded this. He also spent approximately $104,251 on a private jet, too.
Real Estate
It is unclear exactly where Follieri resides. However, he has been known to live in a duplex apartment on the 47th floor of the Olympic Tower in New York City. The rent was approximately $37,000 per month.
Currently, Follieri owns two homes with his wife in Athens and Milan.
Early life
Follieri was born on June 28th, 1978, in Foggia, Puglia in Italy. His father, Pasquale, was a mechanic, while his mother, Anna, was a journalist.
Follieri’s family were wealthy, and he lived a comfortable life as a child. He has no brothers or sisters, and his family raised him as devout Catholics.
Follieri decided that he wanted to leave Italy and move to America, where he believed that he would become successful. He briefly studied Cosmetics Manufacturing at the University of La Sapienza in Rome.
However, for unknown reasons, Follieri left the university shortly before he was due to graduate.
Soon after, Follieri’s father lost his job as the car repair shop owner, leading to Pasquale illegally practicing law. Pasquale worked as a lawyer despite having no formal qualifications.
Career
After Follieri’s father’s business collapsed, the pair decided to become entrepreneurs together and founded Beauty Planet. This cosmetics company aimed to create “mass market hair and beauty care products.”
Unfortunately, the company was not a success and instead consistently faced losses of approximately $50,000. A few years after being created, Follieri declared the company bankrupt. and the company closed in 2002.
Shortly after this, Follieri decided to move to the United States and established the Follieri Group in 2003. He became the CEO of this group, while his father was made the president.
The group was a real-estate company that claimed to have the Vatican’s support. Follieri sold a several properties owned by the Catholic Church, which it needed to do in order to pay victims of the 2004 sexual abuse claims.
However, in reality, Follieri had no such support and instead illegally used his connections with the Vatican to achieve these sales.
The group attracted several high-profile investors, including former president Bill Clinton and billionaire Ron Burke.
He also received an investment from the Yucaipa group, which was worth approximately $50 million, and he used this to purchase ten properties.
During this time, Follieri founded the non-profit organization, the Follieri Foundation. As part of its charitable work, the Foundation pledged $1 million to Clinton’s charity.
This money aimed to support Honduran children with vaccinations against hepatitis. Later, Follieri pledged $50 million to the same charity group, although this eventually went unpaid.
However, allegations soon came out against Follieri, claiming he had mismanaged several investments. The New York City Police Department arrested Follieri in 2008 after a bad $250,000 check was cashed.
This followed several lawsuits from several investors, including Ron Burkle. Follieri was accused of 14 counts of wire fraud, alongside money laundering and conspiracy. He pled guilty to the charges, which he agreed to do as part of a prosecutorial deal.
His bail was set at approximately $20,363,427.
Follieri was jailed for four and a half years, which included moving to four separate prisons.
After leaving jail, Follieri paid Burkle $1 million for his original investment, and Follieri was deported to Italy. He is currently barred from returning to America.
Later, Follieri established the Follieri Energy Company and the FHolding UAE, which works as the parent company. Follieri used his contacts from the United States to create the group. He is currently looking at getting approximately $239,500,880 in investment for the company.
Career Highlights
- Created Beauty Planet, company folded in 2002
- In 2003, created Follieri Group and gained several investments
- In 2008, imprisoned for defrauding investors
- Jailed for four years
- In 2012, created the Follieri Energy Company
Personal Life
Follieri was previously in a relationship with American actress Anne Hathaway. The pair met in 2004, and the two were together for several years until Follieri’s arrest. Hathaway broke up with Follieri when he went to prison, and the two have not spoken since then.
Anne Hathaway’s ex Raffaello Follieri claims she never spoke to him after arrest https://t.co/H0yYzQMD8R pic.twitter.com/Yq4f6pKtsR
— Page Six (@PageSix) July 19, 2021
Eventually, Follieri met his future wife, Konstantina, who he met during his prison sentence. It is unclear when the pair got married. However, they have a five-year-old son named Pasquale, as well as a daughter whose name is unknown.
Follieri is a devout Catholic, although he did admit that he questioned his faith during his time in jail.
Interesting Facts
- Follieri’s father, Pasquale, was accused of similar crimes to Follieri. In 2005, an Italian court convicted Pasquale of mishandling $300,00 from a resort company. Pasquale later appealed this sentencing.
Summary
Raffaello Follieri is a former estate agent who is the CEO of several businesses, including the Follieri Group, Follieri Energy, and FHolding UAE.
He rose to prominence after being convicted for defrauding investors and dating actress Anne Hathaway. He has a net worth of approximately $150 million.