Kenneth C. Griffin

Kenneth Cordele Griffin, an American hedge fund manager, entrepreneur, and investor, was born on October 15, 1968 in Daytona Beach, Florida. He is the founder and CEO of Citadel LLC, a multinational hedge fund.

In 1986, Kenneth C. Griffin started investing from his Harvard dorm room, showcasing his interest in finance at a young age.

In 1987, Kenneth C. Griffin established a small hedge fund that incorporated emerging quantitative analytics for making investment decisions.

Ken Griffin's success led to the formation of Citadel LLC, a prominent financial institution.

Kenneth C. Griffin established Citadel LLC on November 1, 1990, in Chicago, Illinois, with an initial investment of $4.2 million. It has grown to become one of the largest hedge funds globally.

In 1999, Kenneth C. Griffin paid $60.5 million for Paul Cezanne's 'Curtain, Jug and Fruit Bowl', setting a record price for an Impressionist painting.

After the collapse of Enron, Kenneth C. Griffin saw an opportunity and sent a team to interview energy traders, meteorologists, and researchers to start an energy trading business.

In 2002, Ken Griffin and his partners founded Citadel Securities as a market maker in the US capital markets. Citadel Securities has grown to become one of the largest liquidity providers globally, catering to over 1,400 institutional clients, including major central banks and sovereign wealth funds.

In 2004, Kenneth C. Griffin reportedly paid a record price of $60 million for Paul Cézanne's painting Curtain, Jug and Fruit Bowl (ca. 1893).

In 2005, the billionaire decided to personally stop trading and admitted that his staff was more skilled at it. He made this statement to Bloomberg Markets magazine.

In 2011, Kenneth C. Griffin collaborated with University of Chicago economics professor John A. List to investigate whether investing in teachers or parents leads to better student performance outcomes.

At the beginning of 2014, Kenneth C. Griffin made a historic $150 million donation to Harvard University's financial aid program, marking the largest single donation to the institution at that time.

In December 2015, Kenneth C. Griffin publicly endorsed Marco Rubio for the 2016 Republican presidential nomination and pledged to donate millions to a pro-Rubio super PAC.

In October 2017, Kenneth C. Griffin's charitable fund contributed $1 million to the Obama Foundation, supporting its initiatives and projects.

In November 2017, Kenneth C. Griffin's charitable fund generously donated $125 million to bolster the Department of Economics at the University of Chicago, leading to its renaming as the Kenneth C. Griffin Department of Economics.

In June 2019, Kenneth C. Griffin was reported to own 80% of Citadel Securities, his market-making firm, according to a S&P Global Ratings report.

In October 2019, Kenneth C. Griffin's charitable fund announced a monumental $125 million donation to the Museum of Science and Industry in Chicago, marking a significant milestone in the museum's history.

On February 18, 2021, Kenneth C. Griffin testified before the House Financial Services Committee about his role in the GameStop controversy.

On May 5, 2022, Kenneth C. Griffin donated $1.5 million to Lisa Murkowski through Alaskans for L.I.S.A. (Leadership in a Strong Alaska).

In March 2023, Kenneth C. Griffin partnered with former Google CEO Eric Schmidt to donate $50 million to Schmidt's new scientific research project, Convergent Research.

In April 2023, Harvard University renamed its graduate school in honor of Kenneth C. Griffin after he donated $500 million to the institution.

In September 2023, Kenneth C. Griffin established Griffin Catalyst, a platform for his philanthropic and civic work. The organization serves as an umbrella for his various efforts.

In December 2023, Kenneth C. Griffin and American entrepreneur David Geffen pledged to donate $400 million to the Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center, the largest single gift in the cancer center's 150-year history.

As of April 2, 2024, Kenneth C. Griffin serves as the chief executive of Citadel, a hedge fund managing $63 billion in assets. He also founded Citadel Securities, a global market-making business.

In response to a controversial student group letter following Hamas' attack on Israel on October 7, 2024, Kenneth C. Griffin's company pledged not to hire any Harvard students who allegedly signed the letter. This decision was part of the larger stance taken by Griffin regarding Harvard University.