Icahn’s Empire: How One Man Made A Fortune On Wall Street

Founder of Icahn Enterprises, Carl Icahn is worth approximately $15.7 billion USD.

He made his fortune as one of Wall Street’s notorious “corporate raiders” in the 1980’s and he’s also had the opportunity to become a:

-Notable entrepreneur
-Investor
-Philanthropist

Here’s how he made his fortune:

Icahn’s First Step:

Carl Icahn was born on February 16, 1936, in Brooklyn, New York, and raised in Queens. He was the only child of Bella, a public-school teacher, and Michael, a cantor at a local synagogue.

Growing up, Icahn didn’t have much money and he grew up in a tough neighborhood which created his “street smarts” mentality.

Icahn’s Second Step:

Icahn went to school like a normal young man, and gradated from Far Rockaway High School in Queens, New York.

Upon his graduation he was admitted into Princeton University.

Icahn’s Third Step:

After earning a B.A. in Philosophy from Princeton in 1957, Icahn heeded his mother’s wishes and enrolled at New York University School of Medicine.

Never fully invested in the process, he dropped out during his third year and went into the Army Reserves.

Icahn’s Fourth Step:

After the Army (1961), Icahn began his career on Wall Street as a Broker.

After receiving financial assistance from an uncle in 1968, Icahn obtained a seat on the New York Stock Exchange and launched Icahn & Co., a securities firm devoted to arbitrage and options trading.

Icahn’s Fifth Step:
Icahn then began to acquire major portions of stock in Tappan – a family-owned appliance company.

He was labeled as one of the notorious “corporate raiders” of the 1980s.

Icahn’s Sixth Step:

He also engaged in what was called “greenmailing”.

That means he was threatening to take over corporations such as Marshall Field and Phillips Petroleum.

Icahn’s Seventh Step:

In 1984, after assuming control of the American Car & Foundry Company, he slashed overhead and liquidated assets, turning a sizable profit after three years.

However, in 1985, a significant effort to run Trans World Airlines (TWA) after its purchase was not a successful endeavor.

Icahn took the company private and invested a large amount of his own money, but ended up resigning his position as chairman after the company filed for bankruptcy in 1992.

Icahn’s Eighth  Step:
Icahn started and continued his trademark of “activist investing” into the 1990s to avoid scandals.

He also launched bids to take over RJR Nabisco – gaining $600 million in the process.

Icahn’s Ninth Step:

In 2004, Icahn established a hedge fund and tried his effort to break up Time Warner and push its CEO out the door.

He also attempted to take control of Blockbuster, but gaining control over the company was fruitless since there was a decline in the video rental market.

Icahn’s Tenth Step:
In 2007, Ichan became CEO of Icahn Capital LP – a subsidiary of Icahn Enterprises.

Icahn’s Eleventh Step:

In 2012, Icahn announced that he had acquired a significant stake in Netflix.

The investor has since remained in the headlines with his attempts to influence transactions at eBay and Apple.

Icahn also involved in a public feud with Pershing Square Capital Management CEO, Bill Ackman.

He is also a resilient supporter of the 2016 Republican presidential nominee, Donald Trump.
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Icahn was ranked No. 43 on the Forbes list of billionaires in 2016.

In spite of his reputation as a ruthless investor and negotiator, Icahn has contributed a significant amount of his wealth to the fields of education and medicine, with a particular interest in genomics.

However, he does have a soft side and he has established a series of charter schools and homeless shelters in the Bronx, New York.

Icahn worked hard and constantly sought after financial growth.

He was obsessed with success and he made sure that everything he did was in alignment with the purpose of making more.

Do you see these qualities within yourself?