Mehmet Ömer Koç (born 24 March 1962) is a Turkish businessman, art collector, and chairman of Koç Holding. In 2013 Forbes estimated his net worth at US$1.1 billion.[1]
Ömer Koç | |
|---|---|
 Official portrait, 2016 | |
| Born | Mehmet Ömer Koç 24 March 1962 Ankara, Turkey |
| Education | Robert College Millfield Columbia College Columbia Business School |
| Occupation | Businessman |
| Known for | Chairman of Koç Holding |
| Parent | Rahmi Koç |
| Relatives | Mustafa Koç (brother) Ali Koç (brother) |
| Website | Official Website |
Early life edit
Koç was born on 24 March 1962 in Ankara, Turkey. A third generation of the Koç family, he is the second son of Rahmi Koç and grandson of Vehbi Koç, founder of Koç Holding.[2] He graduated from Robert College in Istanbul, attended Millfield School in England, studied at Georgetown University before graduating from Columbia College in 1985 with a bachelor's degree in Ancient Greek. He obtained his MBA from Columbia Business School in 1989.[3][4]
Career edit
Koç began his business career working at Kofisa Trading Company in Geneva, Switzerland. He joined the family business in 1992 as a finance coordinator and was vice president and president of the Energy Group. He became a member of the board of directors in 2004 and vice chairman in 2008.[3] Shortly after his brother, Mustafa Vehbi Koç, died after a heart attack in 2016, Koç was elected chairman of Koç Holding, Turkey's largest company, in 2016.[5] The company's output contributes nearly 10 percent of Turkey's total GDP and is the only Turkish company on the Fortune 500 list.[5] He is also chairman of Tüpraş, the largest oil refiner and industrial company in the country.[6][7][8] He is chairman of the board of trustees of Koç University.[9] As of January 2018, Koc owns 0.74% of Koç Holding.[10] He sits on the steering committee of the Bilderberg meeting.[11]
Art collection edit
Not much of Koç's personal life is known as he shies away from the public and media.[4] He lives in London and is known for his fondness for both contemporary and classical art.[4][12][13][14] He is a sponsor of the Istanbul Biennial and Turkey's pavilion at the Venice Biennale.[15] He established the nonprofit art space Arter in 2010.[16][14] For his sponsorship of Turkey's contemporary art scene, he was named by ArtReview as of the "100 Most influential people in 2016 in the contemporary artworld."[15] He also maintains an interest in Ottoman art, and has a large Iznik pottery collection.[17] He is reported to have the finest private collection of objects and books about Ottoman history in the world.[16][18][19]
References edit
- ^ "Mehmet Omer Koc". Forbes. Retrieved 22 May 2020.
- ^ ""Seeing is not feeling." Ömer Koç's advice to Istanbul explores". The Guide Istanbul. 27 January 2020. Retrieved 22 May 2020.
- ^ a b "Ömer M. Koç | Chairman". www.koc.com.tr. Retrieved 22 May 2020.
- ^ a b c "Ömer Mehmet Koç Kimdir ? - Ömer Mehmet Koç Hayatı ve Biyografisi". www.haberler.com. Retrieved 22 May 2020.
- ^ a b "Turkey: Omer Koc elected chairman of Koc Holding". www.aa.com.tr. Retrieved 22 May 2020.
- ^ "Largest Turkish refiner Tupras 'has cut runs at Izmir refinery by 50% due to pandemic impact on fuel demand'". www.intellinews.com. 30 March 2020. Retrieved 22 May 2020.
- ^ "Tüpraş to halt output at oil refinery in İzmir - Latest News". Hürriyet Daily News. Retrieved 22 May 2020.
- ^ "TUPRF | Tupras Turkiye Petrol Rafinerileri A.S. Company Profile & Executives - WSJ". www.wsj.com. Retrieved 22 May 2020.
- ^ "Commemorated for Eternity". 👍 #iyileşeceğiz. Retrieved 22 May 2020.
- ^ "Koç'taki bilmece: Caroline Koç'un hisseleri". T24 (in Turkish). Retrieved 28 August 2021.
- ^ "STEERING COMMITTEE". www.bilderbergmeetings.org. Retrieved 19 September 2021.
- ^ Miller, Catherine. "Sex, death and ceramics". Financial Times. Retrieved 22 May 2020.
- ^ "Ali Koç ve Ömer Koç kimdir?". www.hurriyet.com.tr (in Turkish). Retrieved 22 May 2020.
- ^ a b "'Game-changer' museum to open in Istanbul in time for city's biennial". www.theartnewspaper.com. Retrieved 22 May 2020.
- ^ a b "Ömer Koç". artreview.com. Retrieved 22 May 2020.
- ^ a b "Turkey's contemporary art scene". Financial Times. 26 November 2010. Retrieved 22 May 2020.
- ^ "Cornucopia Magazine : Iznik: The Ömer Koç Collection". www.cornucopia.net. Retrieved 22 May 2020.
- ^ Humphries, Oscar (1 September 2013). "Turkish delight". Apollo. 178 (612): 62–67.
- ^ "ÖMER KOÇ KOLEKSİYONUNDAN 500 YILLIK ÇİNİ MAŞRAPA ÇALINDI - SalonAntik". www.salonantik.com. Retrieved 22 May 2020.