Klaus-Michael Kühne (born 2 June 1937) is a German billionaire businessman. As of October 2021, the Bloomberg Billionaires Index estimated Kühne’s net worth to be US$36.2 billion, making him the richest person in Germany. He is the honorary chairman and majority owner (53.3%) of the international transport company Kühne + Nagel, co-founded by his grandfather, August Kühne (1855–1932).
The majority of Klaus-Michael Kuehne’s wealth is derived from his stakes in two shipping companies: Kuehne + Nagel and Hapag-Lloyd.
He has a 53% stake in Kuehne + Nagel, according to company’s 2022 annual report. Kuehne + Nagel is the world’s largest sea-freight forwarder, according to its website.
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Kuehne owns 30% of container-shipping company Hapag-Lloyd through Kuehne Maritime, according to its 2022 annual report. He’s also acquired 15% of Deutsche Lufthansa, according to its 2022 annual report.
The value of his cash investments is based on dividends, insider transactions, taxes and market performance.
Inge Lauble-Meffert, a spokeswoman at the Kuehne Foundation, declined to comment on the calculation.
Biography
Grandfather August Kuehne and his partner Friedrich Nagel founded transportation and logistics company Kuehne + Nagel in Bremen, Germany, in 1890. Klaus-Michael was born in 1937, and joined the family business in 1958, following a banking apprenticeship. He was appointed CEO of the Hamburg, Germany-based company eight years later, and began a global expansion by focusing on acquisitions.
Purchasing competitors, he increased Kuehne + Nagel’s market share in areas where it had a limited presence, such as road and contract logistics. He joined the board of directors after resigning as CEO, in 1975. He was named executive chairman of the board in 1992, and was appointed the company’s honorary chairman in 2011.
Kuehne and a group of investors made a successful bid in 2008 for a majority stake in Hapag-Lloyd, Europe’s fourth-largest container-shipping line. He lives in Schindellegi, Switzerland, with his wife, Christine, and is chairman of his namesake foundation.
Career
In 1963, he joined his father Alfred Kühne (1895–1981) as a junior partner at Kühne + Nagel. He has lived in Switzerland since 1975 in the city of Schindellegi, the location of the Kühne + Nagel headquarters. He became CEO of the company in 1996.
He also runs Kuhne Holding AG. In 2016, the company acquired 20% of VTG, a rail logistics company. In April 2020, Kühne upped his stake in shipping company Hapag-Lloyd to 30%, having previously owned 26% of the business, making him the largest shareholder.
In 2022, he doubled his stake in Deutsche Lufthansa AG, Germany’s largest airline.
Milestones
- 1937 Born in Hamburg, Germany, to Alfred Kuehne and his wife.
- 1958 Joins Kuehne & Nagel following a banking apprenticeship.
- 1976 Kuehne Stiftung is founded to support education and science causes.
- 1981 Klaus-Michael’s father, Alfred Kuehne, dies.
- 1992 Becomes executive chairman of the board.
- 1994 Kuehne + Nagel sells shares in an initial public offering.
- 2008 Heads a consortium that buys Hapag-Lloyd.
- 2011 Appointed as Kuehne & Nagel’s honorary chairman.
- 2015 Hapag-Lloyd starts publicly trading in Hamburg.
