By Vania Raebel | October 7, 2019
The Simmons Family (Net Worth: $5.4 billion, Company Name: Contran Corporation)
The Simmons family became one of the richest in America thanks to an acquisition concept called corporate raiding, wherein they undertake leveraged buyouts of corporations. Contran Corporation is owned by Harold Simmons, Sr., who started out as a bank examiner for the government, then later on for a private company.
While the company’s endeavors in corporate takeovers didn’t always end up completely successful, it has helped them amass a great fortune which the family often use for philanthropic activities, like making a $200 million donation to the University of Texas’ Southwest Medical Center.
