Michael Hintze

Sir Michael Hintze (born 27 July 1953) is a British-Australian businessman, philanthropist and Conservative Party political patron, based in the United Kingdom. According to the latest Forbes Rich List, he is the world’s 880th richest person, worth $1.2 billion.

Early life
After his grandparents, who were related to Russian nobility, fled from Russia after the 1917 Bolshevik revolution, he was born in the Chinese city of Harbin. After Mao Zedong and the Chinese Communist Party took over power, his refugee parents left for Australia.

Raised by his secretary mother in Sydney, he was educated at the local Christian Brothers school. He then graduated from the University of Sydney having studied physics and engineering, residing at St John's College. He also holds an MSc in Acoustics from the University of New South Wales, an MBA from Harvard Business School, and a Doctor of Business and an Honoris Causa from the University of New South Wales.

Career
On graduation, he joined the Australian Army for three years, rising to the rank of Captain.

Moving to New York to train in financial services, he worked for Salomon Brothers and Credit Suisse First Boston. Relocating to London with them, he then became Head of Equity Trading at Goldman Sachs.

In 1999 he launched his own hedge fund company, CQS, and has been cited in the press as one of the highest paid people in the City of London.

Hintze was ranked #5 on Financial News’ FN100 Most Influential list in the hedge fund category.

CQS Asset Management, which has been described as "one of the world's leading credit market players" has assets under management reported at $11 billion. The CQS Directional Opportunities Fund, which is managed by Hintze, was ranked #3 on Bloomberg's list of the 100 top-performing large hedge funds for 2012.

In 2013, Hintze's CQS received awards for the "Best Hedge Fund Manager Overall," "Best Hedge Fund Manager in Credit," and "Best Multi-Hedge Fund Manager" at the Financial News Awards for Excellence in Institutional Hedge Fund Management.

CQS was reported to be on the opposite side of the infamous JPMorgan trade by Bruno Iksil, nicknamed the London Whale, in which JPMorgan lost an estimated $2 billion. The total gains by CQS are unknown.

Hintze is credited by veteran economic commentator and journalist Alex Brummer with warning about the state of UK banking, the outlook for the UK housing market, and the scale of toxic-debt on the balance sheets of UK banks.

Philanthropy
With his wife Dorothy, Hintze set up the Hintze Family Charitable Foundation, which has given significant and wide-ranging philanthropic support to around 150 different causes, focusing mainly on health, education, religion and the arts.

Among major donations, he has established the chair of International Security at the University of Sydney, enabled the restoration of Michelangelo’s frescoes in the Pauline Chapel at the Vatican and sponsored two major galleries at the Victoria and Albert Museum. He also came to the aid of Wandsworth Museum, which was facing imminent closure by offering a £2,000,000 rescue package while co-chairing Clapham's Trinity Hospice campaign for a new in-patient centre which has now been completed. Through CQS and the Hintze Family Charitable Foundation he provided funding to create a 'theatre in the round' at the Old Vic in London.

Most recent projects have included sponsorship of an iconic exhibition of Raphael's Tapestries for the Sistine Chapel at the V&A and a £2,000,000 donation to the National Gallery.

The donation to the National Gallery will be used in part to fund refurbishment, including the installation of new technology to reduce the gallery’s running costs and carbon footprint.

Hintze gave a $1,000,000 gift to the University of Sydney's Charles Perkins Centre, which focuses on turning medical research into viable treatments.

Hintze has also donated $1,000,000 to the University of New South Wales (UNSW) for a new lecture theatre. The donation was made in honour of his father, Michael Hintze senior, who is also a UNSW alumnus.

The Hintze Family Charitable Foundation is also listed as a Life Benefactor Donor to the National Theatre.

Hintze currently serves as chairman of the Prince's Foundation for Building Community, a trustee of the National Gallery, the Institute of Economic Affairs, the University of Sydney Trust and Wandsworth Museum. He also serves on the International Council of the V&A and is Chairman of the UK Patrons of the Arts of the Vatican Museums. In 2009 he was appointed vice-president of the Public Monuments and Sculpture Association.

Hintze was initially appointed to the National Gallery’s Board of Trustees by former Prime Minister Gordon Brown (Labour Party) in 2008. He was later reappointed by Prime Minister David Cameron (Conservative Party).

The Guardian has reported that Hintze is a donor to the Global Warming Policy Foundation.

In recognition for their charitable contributions in support of the arts, Michael and his wife Dorothy received the Prince of Wales Medal for Arts Philanthropy in 2009.

Conservative Party donations
In 2006, at the time of the Cash for Peerages allegations concerning the Labour Party, Hintze voluntarily revealed he was one of the previously anonymous patrons who had made loans to the Conservative Party. To date his known loans and donations to the party total around £4million. In the five months to September 2011 he donated £31,000, enough to grant him membership to the Conservative Treasurers’ Group, the second highest rung on the party's donor’s ladder, which allows its members access to senior Conservative figures through a series of lunches, receptions and campaign launches.

When the Conservative Party were in opposition, Hintze provided the following personal cash donations: £37,500 to George Osborne; £25,000 to David Willetts; £10,000 to the private office of Dr Liam Fox MP; £1,200 to Theresa May; £7,000 to David Davis; £1,500 to Adam Holloway; £5,000 Boris Johnson. In addition, CQS made non-cash donations of: £25,763 to William Hague; £10,439 to Dr Liam Fox; £1,254 to George Osborne. In May 2008, David Cameron declared a donation from Hintze to the Conservative Party that was used to pay for drinks receptions for Tory MPs and their partners. In March 2008, Hintze paid for a private jet to ferry Cameron and George Osborne from Newcastle to Biggin Hill after the Conservative Party conference.

In October 2011, it was revealed that Adam Werritty, a close friend and business associate of then Secretary of State for Defence Dr Liam Fox MP, was provided with a free desk by Hintze at CQS's London base as part of his £29,000 donation to Fox's charity Atlantic Bridge. Hintze also supplied a private jet for Fox and Werritty to fly from the United States to London in May 2011.

Awards
He was made a Knight Commander of the Order of St. Gregory by Pope Benedict XVI in 2005 and was later made a Knight Grand Cross of the Order of St. Gregory.

In January 2013, Hintze was appointed Member of the Order of Australia (AM) for his "significant service to the community through philanthropic contributions to organizations supporting the arts, health and education." He was knighted in the 2013 Birthday Honours for services to the arts.

Personal life
Married to American citizen Dorothy, whom he met at Harvard, the couple have four children, partially educated at British state schools. Hintze is a Roman Catholic.