A Celebrated Investor’s Extraordinary Life
When Lars Windhorst recently hosted his annual summer gathering at his luxurious Mayfair offices, it was meant to be a joyous occasion, marking yet another comeback in a life filled with unlikely rebounds and legal challenges.
The impeccably dressed and composed German investor had just relaunched his investment firm, showing no signs of external stress. However, the festivities were overshadowed by a crisis engulfing one of Windhorst’s major financial backers, water Asset Management. The subsidiary of French bank Natixis had accumulated EUR30bn in assets over the past decade, thanks to impressive returns. Yet, the revelation of water’s substantial investment in debt associated with Windhorst led to demands from clients seeking the return of their money.
Just hours before the celebration, water’s founder and CEO, Bruno Crastes, recorded a video in Paris explaining why he had invested over EUR1bn of client funds in businesses connected to Windhorst, including a struggling lingerie maker and an Abu Dhabi brokerage. “We know him quite well now,” said Crastes. “He is incredibly talented.”
Despite the controversy surrounding water, Windhorst’s dealmaking continued this week. His investment vehicle, Tennor, acquired a EUR125m minority stake in German football club Hertha BSC Berlin, marking one of the Bundesliga’s largest equity transactions to date.
From Rags to Riches: The Journey of Lars Windhorst
Born in 1976 to middle-class parents in the small town of Rahden, Windhorst quickly rose to fame as a teenage entrepreneur, earning recognition from German Chancellor Helmut Kohl as a wunderkind. However, by the age of 34, Windhorst had weathered the collapse of two companies, faced personal bankruptcy, and even served a suspended prison sentence. Since then, he has faced a string of legal battles, including accusations of involvement in complex financial transactions from Ukrainian-born billionaire Len Blavatnik.
“He’s like a cat with nine lives,” says a former business associate, referring not only to Windhorst’s ability to bounce back in business but also to his survival of a plane crash in Kazakhstan in 2007 that claimed his earlobe.
Known for dividing opinions, Windhorst has both admirers who praise his relationship-building skills, boundless energy, and unwavering optimism, and those who resent him for past business dealings. Remarkably, he possesses an uncanny knack for reconciling with those he has previously alienated.
In 2017, Windhorst faced a lawsuit from Italian entrepreneur Silvio Scaglia. However, the following year, his company sealed a deal to acquire luxury lingerie manufacturer La Perla from his former legal adversary.
“He possesses determination. He’s bold and captivating. There’s something hypnotic about him. Your guard goes down,” says a former business associate. “But he does have a tough edge.”
During the 2008 financial crisis, Windhorst faced the spotlight after NordLB incurred significant losses on a disputed trade with one of his ventures. Former NordLB President Gunter Dunkel claimed that the bank lost over EUR150m because Windhorst “did not settle trades.” Windhorst’s company argued that no court had established the reserved amount or the validity of the claim and that it was exercising its legal rights with all involved parties. Dunkel stated that the case was privately resolved for less than the bank’s initial claim.
Shortly after the NordLB incident, Windhorst relocated to London about a decade ago. He reestablished his businesses around investment firm Sapinda, making a profitable bet on troubled German real estate. Sapinda now occupies two floors of a building on Savile Row, with Windhorst’s personal offices on the top floor and the think-tank of Michael Milken, another influential contact, on the floor below.
“His grand ambition is to be worth $1bn,” reveals a hedge fund manager. “Even though he lives like he’s already worth $1bn.”
Windhorst divides his time between Monaco, London, and Berlin, traveling in his private plane, which was temporarily seized in 2017 by a determined plaintiff.
While Windhorst resolved his most recent legal disputes regarding contested trades early last year, several banks still impose restrictions on trading with his entities due to their involvement in failed transactions related to his company’s bonds and shares. In 2017, Goldman Sachs fired a senior executive after a trade with an Abu Dhabi brokerage linked to Windhorst went sour. The executive later sued the bank, claiming it was part of an effort to cover up compliance issues stemming from multiple deals involving a “notorious European entrepreneur” known for wooing bankers with extravagant gifts on his 200ft yacht. Windhorst has consistently denied being the subject of this litigation.
This time, the main focus of scrutiny has been on H2O. Morningstar, a fund rating company, pointed out significant weaknesses in the company’s risk controls that have become increasingly difficult to ignore.
“It’s not really his fault; it’s H2O’s problem,” says a fund manager who previously invested with Windhorst. “But he does have a tendency to be associated with things when they go wrong.”
