Home: London, New York, and Naples, FL (depending on the season, and the golf). Age: Old enough to play the long game, young enough to still enjoy it. Birthplace: South Africa. Profession: Global investor, strategist, and philanthropist. Organization: Blumberg Family Office; Blumberg Family Trust. Title: Chairman & Chief Investment Officer. Significant other: The love of my life, partner in all things, and my best deal ever. Alma mater: The world, first; formal education across continents, next; and life still teaching the longest lessons. Languages spoken: Enough to close a deal in Johannesburg, London, or Santiago, and order dinner (or find the 19th hole) anywhere.
Current project: Recasting century-old mining legacies across multiple continents into modern, competitive, sustainable enterprises. Recent recognition: Being called “the long-arc investor” and being recognized as a steward of capital who can turn legacy into longevity. Recent professional development: Guiding several of the largest mining restructurings across Africa, the Americas, and Europe — reminding the industry that mining legacies, like history itself, bend toward those who think in decades. Latest contribution to others: Working to leave industries more sustainable and communities more resilient. What’s been your big (or biggest leap)? Crossing an ocean as a young man, then reshaping an industry over a lifetime, from gold to platinum to copper to rare earths. Hobbies: Golf, global travel, jazz and vinyl, wine, chess, bridge. Recent travel or adventure: Sun Valley for ideas, St. Andrews for golf, Santiago for business. Books recently read: Atlas Shrugged, by Ayn Rand; The Intelligent Investor, by Benjamin Graham; Only the Paranoid Survive, by Andrew Grove.
Personality profile: Disciplined strategist, occasional contrarian and student of history, markets, and cultures, believing wisdom compounds best with humility, perspective and a good sense of humor. What one word would your closest friend use to describe you? Steadfast Moral compass: Fairness first, with resilience as true north. How do you define a perfect friendship? Like compound interest, it grows steadily, requires patience, and becomes invaluable over time. How do you define an ideal business relationship? A sense of ownership, where wins are shared, mistakes are lessons, and integrity is the constant. What is your greatest joy? Watching my daughters grow into the kind of people you’d be lucky to have as friends.
What three emojis best describe you? 🌍⛳️📚.
What is your favorite place (or way) to spend money? Philanthropy and helping others live better lives; clean water, education, opportunity. How do you relieve stress? Reading, taking a long walk or catching up with friends who keep me grounded. What ingredient is essential to your perfect vacation? Unplugging completely.
What movies have you repeatedly watched? The Godfather, Lawrence of Arabia and Shawshank Redemption. What’s prominently featured on your home or office wall? An old world map marked with places of investment, travel, and memory; a set of gold scales honoring my family’s mining heritage and the balance between capital and conscience; and a family photo — the truest story of love and legacy. Besides your parents, who has had the greatest influence on your life? My grandfather, who taught me that legacy isn’t inherited, it’s built. And my wife — whose quiet strength, love, and grace refine that lesson daily. What’s the best advice you received growing up? Keep showing up, keep getting better. Most people stop at one or the other. What’s the best advice you received in your career? Capital is patient, people are not. Invest accordingly. What modern technology innovation do you most appreciate? The smartphone. It’s a compass, library and live newsroom in one pocket. What world event has had the greatest influence on your life? Not a single event, but the sweep of history itself, proof that resilience and reinvention follow even the darkest chapters.
What is your big idea? To prove that legacy investing isn’t old-fashioned, it’s the only way forward. What change would you like to see in the world? Cleaner oceans and rivers, thriving wildlife, stronger communities. What message do you want to send out into the world? Legacy is built not by extracting value, but by compounding it, across industries, communities, and generations. What widely held belief do you reject? That short-term wins equal long-term success. What mega-trend most excites you? The global energy transition. Not just renewables and electrification, but the mining backbone that makes it all possible.
What title would you choose for the movie about your life? Relentless. What actor would you choose to play you in the movie about your life? Clint Eastwood. Who would you like to spend an evening with, in heaven? The visionaries and pioneers who shaped our world across the ages to explore ancient mysteries, cosmic questions, and unsolved legends. As a kid, what did you first want to be when you grew up? An explorer. How would you choose to spend tomorrow, if you knew it was your last day on earth? With loved ones over a good meal, a carefree round of golf, and an African sunset. I’d raise a glass—and wish for a little more time. What advice would you give your younger self? Play the long game sooner. Patience isn’t just a virtue, it’s a compounding strategy.
Personal motto: Think in decades, act in details. Favorite quote: “All men dream, but not equally. Those who dream by night in the dusty recesses of their minds wake in the day to find that it was vanity. But the dreamers of the day are dangerous men, for they may act on their dreams with open eyes, to make them possible (T. E. Lawrence). Desired epitaph: Turned volatility into permanence, cycles into stories, and dinners into deals. Never forgot to leave a smile behind. A legacy still compounding.
