George Soros hands over control of $37b empire to his son

The billionaire philanthropist George Soros has handed over the leadership of his $US25 billion ($37 billion) empire to his 37-year-old son.

Soros’ business holdings include his non-profit Open Society Foundations, which is active in more than 120 countries and funnels about $US1.5 billion annually to groups such as those that back human rights and promote the growth of democracies around the world. It controls the majority of assets managed by Soros’s family office.

The news was first reported in the Wall Street Journal and confirmed by a spokesperson for the organisation.

In an interview with The Wall Street Journal, Alex Soros signalled that the Open Society Foundations (OSF) would play a significant role in the coming 2024 US presidential election.

He said he was “more political” than his 92-year-old father, who has been a right-wing target for his backing of liberal causes, such as reducing racial bias in the justice system. But he noted that the two “think alike”.

Alex said he was broadening his father’s “liberal aims” and embracing different causes, including voting and abortion rights, as well as gender equity. He said he aimed to keep using the family’s wealth to back left-leaning US politicians.

Alex Soros told the Financial Times, via a spokesperson, he plans to “double down on defending voting rights and personal freedom at home and supporting the cause of democracy abroad”.

He recently met Biden administration officials, Senate majority leader Chuck Schumer and heads of state, including Brazil’s President, Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva, and Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, to push for issues related to the family foundation.