Lord Jacob Rothschild attends the launch of the Stella McCartney Global flagship store on Old Bond Street on June 12, 2018 in London, England.Photo:Dave Benett/Getty Images

Financier Jacob Rothschild, Who Broke from Family Bank to Start His Own Empire, Dies at 87

Dave Benett/Getty Images

Jacob Rothschild, a British financier, philanthropist and member of the Rothschild banking family, has died. He was 87.

“Our father Jacob was a towering presence in many people’s lives, a superbly accomplished financier, a champion of the arts and culture, a devoted public servant, a passionate supporter of charitable causes in Israel and Jewish culture, a keen environmentalist and much-loved friend, father and grandfather,” their statement read.

The family shared that Rothschild “will be buried in accordance with Jewish custom in a small family ceremony and there will be a memorial at a later date to celebrate his life.”

In 1963, the famed financier — a seventh-generation heir of the Rothschild banking dynasty — began his career at NM Rothschild & Sons, a family bank, but left in 1980 to head the Rothschild Investment Trust, according to PA Media.

Now called RIT Capital Partners Plc, the business is one of the U.K.’s biggest investment trusts, per Bloomberg.

In 2002,Queen Elizabethawarded the financier the Order of Merit, which is given to “individuals of exceptional distinction in the arts, learning, sciences and other areas such as public service,” according to the U.K. government’swebsite.

David Jones - PA Images/PA Images via Getty

Jacob Rothschild outside Hambros Bank in the City.

To manage his family’s philanthropic portfolio, he founded Windmill Hill Asset Management, per PA Media. Additionally, in 1988, he assumed management of Waddesdon Manor and the Waddesdon estate in Buckinghamshire on behalf of the National Trust.

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Rothschild was married to his wife, Serena, for over five decades before her death in 2019. The couple had four kids: Hannah, 61; Beth, 59; Emily, 56; and Nathaniel, 52, per Bloomberg.

Hannah is slated to take over her father’s role as chair of the Rothschild Foundation, the charity confirmed to PA Media.

source: people.com