Charlene de Carvalho-Heineken

Charlene de Carvalho-Heineken
Born	(1954-06-30) June 30, 1954 Netherlands
Occupation(s)	Businesswoman, entrepreneur
Known for	Controlling 25% stake in Heineken N.V.

Charlene Lucille de Carvalho-Heineken (born 30 June 1954) is a Dutch billionaire entrepreneur who controls a 25% majority stake in Heineken N.V., recognized as the world's second-largest brewing company. As of July 2024, her net worth was valued at approximately US$14.1 billion by Forbes.

Early life

Charlene is the daughter of Dutch industrial magnate Freddy Heineken and Lucille Cummins, an American from a family involved in Kentucky bourbon distillation. She attended Rijnlands Lyceum Wassenaar during her early education and later obtained a law degree from Leiden University.

Career

She possesses a controlling 25% ownership in Heineken and holds the position of executive director within the company. The prestigious biannual Heineken Prizes for cognitive science bear her name.

Personal life

In 1983, Charlene married Michel de Carvalho, a British financier and private banker who is also a former Olympic skier and serves on Heineken NV's supervisory board as a director. The couple resides in London with their five children: Alexander, Louisa, twins Isabel and Sophie, and Charles.

After the passing of her father in 2002, she inherited an estimated £3 billion, which made her the wealthiest individual in the Netherlands at that time. Prior to this inheritance, she held only a single share of Heineken stock. In 2019, the Sunday Times Rich List listed her as the richest woman in the United Kingdom and seventh overall with a fortune estimated at £12 billion. In 2021, Forbes placed her net worth at $16.7 billion, ranking her as the 116th richest person worldwide.

See also

• List of Dutch by net worth