Who says you cannot build a billion-dollar financial empire with the game of poker? In a recent report from Canada’s Casino Reports, 44-year old Canadian entrepreneur Mark Scheinberg has joined some elite company ‘North of the Border’. With an estimated net worth of $4.8 billion in US dollars, he is now among the wealthiest people in Canada.
When Did PokerStars’ Founder Join Canada’s Top-10 in Total Wealth?
He has been a mover and a shaker his whole adult life while making a name for himself in the financial world since 2001. According to the report by Paul Brooks at Casino Reports, Scheinberg was born in Israel, and his family moved to Quebec when he was 13.
Riding the tremendous growth of online gambling and real money poker rooms during the early 2000’s, his company PokerStars rose quickly through the ranks to take its place at the top of list as the most prominent and most successful online poker site in the world.
The father and son team drew global attention for this impressive accomplishment, and they are often seen as true pioneers of the online poker industry.
How Does Full Tilt Poker Fit Into This Story?
The report notes that ‘by 2014, Mark Scheinberg was also the CEO and majority shareholder (with 75 percent interest) of Rational Group Ltd., as the parent company of PokerStars and Full Tilt Poker, as another highly popular online poker room’.
Amaya Gaming Group
In August of that year, The Stars Group forged a deal to acquire all the Rational Group’s assets for $4.9 billion. Formally known as Amaya Gaming Group, this Canadian gaming giant made Scheinberg the richest person in Isle of Man, which was the location of his online poker company.
Develops Luxury Hotel, Residential and Retail Complex In Madrid
Since then, he has used the proceeds from this sale to invest in any number of projects around the globe.
One of his latest endeavors is the development of a luxury hotel, residential and retail complex in Madrid, Spain with an anticipated opening in 2019.
He has been able to grow his financial empire to $4.8 billion to become 422nd richest person in the world according to Forbes’ new list.
One Of The Eight Billionaires That Made Their Money From Casino Gambling
Also in the Casino Reports’ piece, Brooks goes on to mention that there are eight billionaires whose major source of wealth came from real money gambling online, online gaming or betting software related businesses.
