The billionaire who rose from humble roots in Syria to conquer the business world in France

The billionaire who rose from humble roots in Syria to conquer the business world in France

PARIS: Syrian-born French billionaire Mohed Altrad was in the news recently for having stood for the office of mayor in Montpellier, a southern French city popular with artists and tourists. Though he lost the election, his story is literally one of rags to riches. He emerged from the most humble, and distressing, of origins to achieve levels of success most people only dream of.

He made the bulk of his fortune while living in Montpellier. The tale of how a former Syrian became involved in the local politics of Montpellier is a genuine success story.

Despite his wealth and success in business, this 72-year-old self-made man “” the founder and owner of the Altrad Group, who was named World Entrepreneur in 2015 by Ernst and Young “” continues to walk among the citizens of the city with no bodyguards.

Altrad was born in 1948 into a Bedouin tribe in the desert area of Raqqa in Syria. His mother was very young, only about 14 years old. He describes the tragic circumstances of his birth in a matter-of-fact way.

"My mother, who was about 13, was raped twice by my father, who was much older and the chief of the tribe,“ he