The King of Oil: The Secret Lives of Marc Rich

over two hundred private companies and subsidiaries spread over five continents. Many of these companies—all of which existed under the umbrella of Marc Rich + Co. Holding—were closely connected with one another, whereas others were completely independent. A few of the companies had equitable interest in outside companies. Rich and his partners had originally created this labyrinthine structure because it would allow them both to minimize risks and to make private deals without letting others know that Marc Rich was controlling the show. Now the convoluted network of companies offered a further advantage—it was nearly impossible to determine Rich’s wealth.
    Denise’s father finally intervened in the proceedings and prevented the case from escalating to the point of explosion. Emil Eisenberg was very fond of Marc and continued to stand by him despite the criminal charges against him. Rich, in turn, had great respect for his father-in-law, who reminded Rich of his own father. Eisenberg had also placed a great amount of trust in Rich and had unhesitatingly given him money when he founded his company in 1974. Rich would always be grateful for Eisenberg’s help. Eisenberg traveled to Switzerland in order to negotiate a divorce settlement with Rich. “The lawyers made a big mess,” he said to his son-in-law. “Let’s make sense of the whole thing.” Finally someone had spoken in terms that the trader Marc Rich could understand.
    On June 14, 1996, Marc and Denise Rich were finally divorced. Their marriage had lasted for thirty years. The terms of the settlement were never made public. Several knowledgeable sources have confirmed to me that Denise Rich received a total of365 million; of course, they do not wish to be named when speaking about this very private affair. The365 million was split into two packages. Like all of the four partners’ wives, Denise had a stake in her husband’s company. She owned 13.91percent of Marc Rich + Co. Holding. In December 1990—while she was still married to Rich—Denise received165 million for her 1,070 shares in the course of a capital reduction. 8 In addition, Rich agreed to pay Denise a further200 million. When I asked him about this sum Rich just smiled and said what he always says when the research is correct but he does not wish to officially confirm the results. “It’s not far from the truth.”
“My Biggest Failure”
     
    Six months after the divorce, on December 16, 1996, Rich married Gisela—his lover of many years. They had already been living together for quite some time. In July 1993 the couple had relocated to the village of Meggen in the canton of Lucerne. They moved into the stately Villa Rose on the banks of Lake Lucerne. Rich insisted that Gisela convert to Judaism before they married (a fact that did not meet with universal accep tance in Switzerland’s Jewish circles).
    Rich’s marriage to Gisela would not remain a happy one. When I once asked him what had been his greatest failure, Rich thought about the question for some time before asking, “Business-wise, you mean?” I realized that for once Rich was thinking about something other than closing a deal and said that I was not necessarily asking about business. “Next to the case, my next biggest failure was my marriage to my second wife, Gisela,” Rich said. For a moment I was stunned by Rich’s openness. Then I asked him why the marriage had not worked. “At the beginning it was very good. Then she got spoiled, with money and possessions. She decided she wanted more and I said no,” Rich explained. “Do you regret divorcing Denise?” I asked. “No, I don’t, but I regret marrying Gisela,” he answered. On June 15, 2005, Rich divorced for the second time. I wanted to know if it had been an expensive affair. Friends of Rich’s have told me that Gisela received “several tens of millions” in the settlement. “I don’t want to remember,” Rich said and laughed. “As expensive as Denise?” I asked. “Much less,” he replied.

 

     

The
END
of the
KING
of
OIL
     

    I
f the 1970s and 1980s were Rich’s golden age, the 1990s were by far his darkest years. It was a time of death, divorce, and disposal. The death of Rich’s daughter in September 1996 coupled with his divorce from Denise marked the lowest point during these sad times, yet in the 1990s Rich also suffered his greatest financial failure—a fact that has remained a secret to this day. A single bad deal cost