If you’ve ever wondered what it’s like to have an almost unlimited bank account, just take a look at what Ken Griffin purchased for a whopping 8-figure sum at a Sotheby’s auction this week.
Eye-Watering Auction Numbers
Billionaire investor and founder of multinational hedge fund Citadel Ken Griffin has spent an eye-watering sum on a literal museum piece. But is it a work of art? Or a piece of ancient history? Not quite.
Apex at Auction
At a Sotheby’s auction in New York on Wednesday, Griffin beat out six other bidders to claim a 150 million-year-old late-Jurassic stegosaurus skeleton named ‘Apex.’
Beating Out Bidders
The 7 bidders reportedly went back and forth for 15 minutes, raising the price to an enormous $45 million.
7 Times the Estimated Sale Price
The price tag ballooned much higher than the Sotheby’s auctioneers expected. Initially, Apex was only projected to sell for approximately $6 million.
Potential Loan to Museums
Despite spending so much of his own money on the fossil, sources close to Griffin claim that he is already looking for avenues by which to loan the stegosaurus to a US institution.
Not the First Time
It wouldn’t be the first time the CEO has loaned items and made donations with US museums and other educational institutions in mind. In 2018, he donated $16.5 million to the Chicago Field Museum, contributing to a fund to purchase a cast of the world’s biggest dinosaur fossil.
Loaning Out the US Constitution
Then in 2021, Griffin spent a similar $43.2 million to buy a first-edition copy of the US Constitution, which he then loaned to Arkansas’ Crystal Bridges Museum of American Art.
Born in America, Staying in America
“Apex was born in America and is going to stay in America!” Griffin announced in a press release following the sale.
Unearthed in Colorado
Apex, a nearly 27-foot-long specimen with 254 fossil bone elements, was discovered on private property in Moffat County, Colorado, and excavated between 2022 and 2023.
“Finest Specimen to Come to Market”
The enormous dinosaur skeleton was described by Sotheby’s as “the finest stegosaurus specimen to come to market, distinguished by its incredible size, virtual completeness, and exceptional level of preservation.”
Perfect Specimen
The global auction house also made note of its bone development and lack of any signs of arthritis, which would indicate that it lived to comparatively old age. It also bears no signs of post-mortem scavenging or other injuries.
Record-Breaking Fossil
Apex was one of the most complete dinosaur specimens ever found and is now the highest-valued fossil to ever be successfully auctioned off.
Previous Record Holder
The previous record was held by a full-sized T-Rex skeleton named “Stan,” which sold for $31.8 million at a Christie’s auction in 2020. Like Apex, it is one of the most complete dinosaur skeletons ever excavated.
A Rising Trend
Dinosaur auctions have increased in popularity in recent years, with demand sending fossil prices soaring at auction. Some paleontologists have raised alarms over the consumer trend, fearing that public institutions cannot compete with private bidders.
History of Large Purchases
Griffin, who is worth approximately $38 billion according to Forbes, is no stranger to making extravagant purchases, whether historical or material.
Real Estate Tycoon
In addition to his donations and loans to museums, he also broke real estate records when he purchased a New York penthouse for $238 million in 2019 – making it the most expensive home ever sold in the US.
Another Record Broken
He then broke a second real estate record in 2022 when he purchased a $107 million waterfront property in Miami-Dade County, the most expensive home purchased in the region.
$1 Billion Art Collection
The billionaire investor is also one of the world’s foremost art collectors, with a collection worth more than $1 billion that contains pieces by some of modern history’s most renowned artists, including Basquiat, Degas, and Cézanne.
Continuing Success of Citadel
Through his Citadel hedge fund, Griffin and associates now manage more than $60 billion in client assets and trade the most stocks of any company in the world.
An Expanding Empire
Griffin’s empire is only expanding, and he is now the 35th richest person in the world and the richest resident of his new home state of Florida, after moving south in 2022.
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Featured Image Credit: Shutterstock / lev radin.
The content of this article is for informational purposes only and does not constitute or replace professional financial advice.
