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French heiress Liliane Henriette Charlotte Bettencourt (née Schueller; born October 21, 1922; died September 21, 2017) was a socialite and businesswoman. We will know about Liliane Bettencourt Net Worth later in this post.
She was one of L’Oréal’s major stockholders. With a net worth of $44.3 billion, she was the richest woman and the 14th richest person in the world at the time of her death.
Liliane Bettencourt Bio/Wiki
| Birth Name | Liliane Henriette Charlotte Schueller |
| Nick Name | Liliane Bettencourt |
| Age | 94(died 2017) |
| Religion | Chrisitianity |
| Sun Sign/Zodiac Sign | Libra |
| Birth Place | Paris, France |
| Date of Birth | 21st October, 1922 |
| Nationality | French |
| Hobbies | Swimming, Cycling |
Family | |
| Mother's Name | Louise Madeleine Berthe |
| Father's Name | Eugène Schueller |
| Brother | Na |
| Sister | NA |
Girlfriends/Affairs | |
| Affairs/Boyfriends | NA |
Marital Status, Wife and Children | |
| Husband/Spouse | André Bettencourt |
| Marital Status | Deceased |
| Children |   |
Education | |
| School | NA |
| College/University | NA |
| Profession | Economist, Socialite, Businesswoman |
Height, Weight, and Figure Measurements | |
| Height (Approx.) | 5' 4" |
| Weight (Approx.) | NA |
Extra Ordinary Features | |
| Race / Ethnicity | French |
| Hair Color | Brown |
| Eye Color | Black |
| S*xual Orientation | Straight |
Favourite Things | |
| Favourite Food | Italian Cuisine |
| Favourite Book | NA |
| Favourite Colors | Black |
| Favourite Sport | Golf |
| Controversies | Bettencourt affair, political scandal |
Early Life
The only child of Louise Madeleine Berthe (née Doncieux) and Eugène Schueller, the creator of L’Oréal, one of the biggest cosmetics and beauty enterprises in the world, she was born Liliane Henriette Charlotte Schueller on October 21, 1922, in Paris.
After her mother passed away when she was five years old, Liliane became close to her father, who eventually wed her British governess. She began working for her father’s business as an apprentice at the age of 15, labelling shampoo bottles and making cosmetics.
She wed French politician André Bettencourt in 1950; he later ascended to become L’Oréal’s vice chairman and served as a cabinet member in the 1960s and 1970s. Liliane’s father, a Nazi sympathiser, had sponsored and supported La Cagoule in the 1930s; the group’s members were imprisoned in 1937. Mr Bettencourt had been a member of this violent French fascist pro-Nazi organisation.
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Personal Life
In 1950, she married French politician André Bettencourt; he eventually rose to become vice chairman of L’Oréal and served in the government in the 1960s and 1970s. Her spouse, along with other La Cagoule members, was granted asylum at L’Oréal after the war despite his politically unfavourable history.
The Bettencourts eventually relocated to a 1951 Art Moderne home on rue de Delabordère in Neuilly-sur-Seine, France. Françoise, their only child, was born in 1953.
Controversies
Bettencourt mainly avoided the media and gave only a few interviews. Due to her connection with François-Marie Banier, her alienation from her daughter Françoise, and her suspected sponsorship of right-wing French politicians, notably former French President Nicolas Sarkozy, she came under heavy media scrutiny and notoriety starting in 2007.
She sold D’Arros Island, her private island, to a Seychelles-registered conservation company connected to the Swiss Save our Seas Foundation in August 2012 for £60 million.
The Bettencourt Affair
According to most accounts, Bettencourt and François-Marie Banier first connected in 1987 when he was hired to take her shot for the French magazine Egoste. Banier is a French writer, artist, and celebrity photographer. Banier and Bettencourt became friends during the next years, and she turned into his patron, giving him presents that are said to be worth up to €1.3 billion. These presents include cash, 11 works of art valued at €20 million in 2001, including paintings by Picasso, Matisse, Mondrian, Delaunay, and Léger, a surrealist Man Ray picture, and two life insurance policies for €253 million in 2003 and €262 million in 2006.
Bettencourt reportedly transferred the life insurance policies to Banier while she was recuperating from two hospital stints in 2003 and 2006. With a net worth of $30 billion in April 2013, Forbes magazine named Liliane Bettencourt the richest woman in the world in 1999.
Françoise Bettencourt Meyers filed a criminal complaint against Banier in December 2007, less than a month after the passing of her father, charging him with abuse of weakness (or the abuse of a physical or psychological weakness for personal advantage) against Bettencourt.
Brigade Financière Unit
In response to her allegation, the Brigade Financière, the French national police’s financial investigative unit, launched an inquiry. After speaking with Bettencourt’s personnel, they made the decision to bring the matter before a Nanterre court for a trial in September 2009. In December 2009, the court postponed making a decision in the case until April 2010 (then postponed to July 2010) pending the findings of a mental health assessment of Bettencourt. Bettencourt, however, objected to taking these tests.
Following the disclosure of information regarding cassette recordings made by Bettencourt’s butler, Pascal Bonnefoy, the trial was once again postponed until fall 2010, at the earliest.
The butler recorded over 21 hours of dialogue on the recordings, which he later gave to the police, out of concern that Bettencourt may be deceived into believing she had Alzheimer’s illness. According to the tapes, Bettencourt designated Banier as her “single heir,” except for the L’Oréal shares that make up the majority of her fortune and that she had already designated for her daughter and two grandchildren.
After a string of litigation, Bettencourt and her daughter reunited on December 6, 2010. Banier allegedly fell out of favour with Bettencourt after their separation, and she finally left him out of her will. However, their disagreement flared up again during the next summer when Bettencourt asserted that her daughter need psychological assistance.
Victim of Ponzi Scheme
According to reports, Bettencourt lost €22 million and was one of Bernard Madoff’s Ponzi scheme’s most well-known victims. She was the first benefactor of a fund administered by René-Thierry Magon de la Villehuchet’s Access International Advisors. On December 22, 2008, De la Villehuchet committed suicide when it was revealed that his funds had invested a sizeable portion of their wealth with Madoff.
Scandals in the political domain
Following the release of more information on the tape recordings made by her butler, Bettencourt got involved in a high-profile political scandal in France in June 2010. This was all part of the Bettencourt incident. The talks between Bettencourt and her financial advisor, Patrice de Maistre, that were supposedly captured on the recordings suggest that Bettencourt may have evaded taxes by maintaining a sizeable sum of money in secret Swiss bank accounts. A conversation between Bettencourt and French Budget Minister Éric Woerth is also purportedly heard on the recordings.
Woerth was spearheading a prominent campaign to identify affluent tax evaders while simultaneously looking for work for his wife to manage Bettencourt’s money. Furthermore, while Woerth was the budget minister, Bettencourt was given a tax break worth €30 million.
Bettencourt reportedly transferred the life insurance policies to Banier while she was recuperating from two hospital stints in 2003 and 2006. With a net worth of $30 billion in April 2013, Forbes magazine named Liliane Bettencourt the richest woman in the world in 1999.
Françoise Bettencourt
Françoise Bettencourt Meyers filed a criminal complaint against Banier in December 2007, less than a month after the passing of her father, charging him with abuse of weakness (or the abuse of a physical or psychological weakness for personal advantage) against Bettencourt.
A few days later, she claimed French police had forced her to change her evidence regarding Nicolas Sarkozy’s illicit payments. Both Mr Sarkozy and Mr Woerth assert their innocence. Following these accusations, French police searched de Maistre’s residence and workplace. De Maistre is the executive of Clymène, the business that Bettencourt owns and uses to handle her riches. Under French law, political contributions to parties are limited to €7,500 and to individuals to €4,600. Donations over €150 must be made by check, explicitly identifying the donor.
Liliane Bettencourt Education
Liliane Bettencourt did not have a formal education, but at the age of 15, she began working at her father’s business labelling and blending cosmetics. In 1950, she wed Andre Bettencourt, a minister in the French cabinet.
Louise died in 1957, leaving Loreal to Liliane. With a net worth of nearly $44 billion in 2017, Liliane was the richest woman in the world.
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Professional Career
When Bettencourt’s father passed away in 1957, she received the L’Oréal wealth and was made the company’s major shareholder. The business went public in 1963, although Bettencourt kept the bulk of the stock. She traded roughly half of her investment in 1974 for a three per cent (3%) stake in Nestlé S.A. out of concern that the business might be nationalised following the French elections.
Bettencourt owned 185,661,879 (30.5 per cent) of L’Oréal’s outstanding shares as of December 2012, with 76,441,389 (12.56 per cent) of those shares being held in trust (for her daughter). Ownership of the balance is as follows: 229,933,941 (37.76%) of the shares are held by the public, and 178,381,021 (29.78%) are owned by Nestlé, and the remaining shares are kept as treasury stock or in the corporate savings plan.
In accordance with a shareholders’ agreement, Nestlé and the Bettencourt family cooperate. On February 13, 2012, Bettencourt’s term as a board director came to an end, and Jean-Victor, her grandson, was named in her place. The husband of Bettencourt’s daughter, Jean-Pierre Meyers, and her daughter both serve on the board of directors. Bettencourt passed away on September 21, 2017. In Neuilly-sur-Seine, Église Saint-Pierre hosted the burial ceremony.
Philanthropic activities
La Fondation Bettencourt Schueller was established in 1987 by Bettencourt, her husband, and their daughter to promote and advance humanitarian, cultural, and medical projects. Its headquarters are at Neuilly-sur-Seine. The foundation, which has assets of $150 million and an estimated $15 million in yearly spending, allocates around 55% of its money to scientific education and research, 33% to humanitarian and social causes, and 12% to culture and the arts.
The new Monet wing of the Musée Marmottan Monet was partially funded by the foundation in 2008. On the other hand, Bettencourt and Peter Brabeck-Letmathe were jointly “granted” a Black Planet Award in 2007 for spreading tainted baby food, controlling water supplies, and allowing child labour.
Liliane Bettencourt Net Worth
With a net worth of $44.3 billion, she was the richest woman and the 14th richest person in the world at the time of her death. According to reports, Bettencourt had artwork by Matisse, Picasso, Fernand Léger, Derain, Soutine, Mondrian, and furniture by Ruhlmann.
Bettencourt was included among the world’s wealthiest people by Forbes, with an estimated net worth of US$38.8 billion (as of 28 June 2016). She was the richest person in France as of 2016 and the top female billionaire in the world. She was ranked as the 39th most powerful woman in the world by Forbes in 2005.
| Estimated Net Worth in 2022 (Approx) | $44.3 billion |
| Estimated Net Worth in 2021 (Approx) | $44.3 billion |
| Estimated Net Worth in 2020 (Approx) | $44.3 billion |
| Annual Salary | $0 billion (because dead) |
Assets | |
| Houses |   |
| Islands |  |
| Cars |  |
| Brands |      |
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Liliane Bettencourt Husband
For two weeks in 1973, André, Liliane’s husband, served as the temporary French Minister of Foreign Affairs. In 1950, he wed Liliane. The Croix de Guerre was given to André, who is now a Chevalier of the Legion of Honor. He presided over the Haute-Normandie regional council from 1974 until 1981. Between 1965 to 1989, he was also Saint-Maurice-mayor. Declan’s
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Liliane Bettencourt Height, Weight & Age
Although her height and weight remain unknown at the time of her death, she was indeed a beautiful woman who had a very classy look. She carried herself well wherever she went. She was 94 years old when she left to her humble abode in 2017.
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FAQs
How much was the net worth of Liliane Bettencourt?
$44.3 billion
Who was Liliane Bettencourt’s husband?
André
What was Liliane Bettencourt’s age?
94 years
What was the name of Liliane Bettencourt’s firm?
LOREAL Paris
