Alexandus Venio II
Alexandus Venio II (born May 22, 1960) is a Caphirian business magnate, investor and philanthropist. Venio is the current Chief Executive of Quicksilver Industries, a global conglomerate focused in the military-defense industry. Inheriting the business from his father, Venio took Quicksilver Industries from a domestic defense contractor to a global enterprise that ranks as one of the most valuable companies in the world.
Born into one of the most influential families of modern Caphiria, Venio graduated from Fortuna Institute's business school and spent much of his youth being groomed as the heir to his father's business. He honed his business and political acumen overseas where he is regarded as being responsible for the peaceful resolution of the Tryhstian Crisis, as well as the largest IPO in the history of Caphiria when he took Quicksilver Industries public. He has been criticized for his business tactics, which have been considered anti-competitive. This opinion has been upheld by numerous court rulings.
Various publications have noted his philanthropy and love of the arts and declared him to be one of the most influential people in the world, while others have commented on his ruthlessness pragmatism and his questionable business ethics as cause to label him a warmonger and detriment to society. In his youth, Venio shied away from the spotlight and was a reserved person, though now he has fully embraced it and has become a highly public individual known for hosting grand events and becoming a patron for the arts. He regularly contributes large amounts of money to various charitable organizations and scientific research programs through both his private and public foundations.
Since 1988, Venio has been included in the list of Wealthiest People in the World, peaking at 4th in 2010. Currently, he is listed as the sixth-richest person in the world with a net worth of about $74.3 billion.
Life
Early Life
Named after his father, Alexandus Venio II was born in Castra Vetera on 22 May 1960. For some reason, Venio had always had some resentment towards his father and vice versa.So, to differentiate himself from his father, Alexandus insisted that he be called 'Alexi' from a fairly young age much to Venio Sr.'s disapproval.
Being born into an wealthy family, he initially followed the path of any upper class child: he attended the Desert Sands School of Fine Arts, enrolled at Fortuna Institute, and courted a Patrician woman. He was the heir to the growing business empire his father had spent his life building, being groomed to replace him so that he could retire and spend time with his family.
Weeks before he was to begin college at age twenty, he instead liquidated the tuition funds and ran off with his girlfriend to Tryhstia, a very popular Caphirian territory. When they arrived, they were held up at gunpoint and had all of their possessions stolen by a pair of thieves a part of a notorious gang. Alexandus - still wishing to go by the name Alexi - was furious, but not because they had just been robbed.
Miraculously, they agreed. He stayed in Tryhstia for almost seven years with zero communication to, or from his father. In that time, he did keep his promise and the gang--The Black Moth Company-- was a legitimate political force with an agenda and a platform and a message: Tryhstia wanted freedom from Caphiria and were going to get it by force or diplomacy. The Caphirian government and the Black Moth Company came to terms of an agreement: a separation of land. North Tryhstia would become independent once more while South Tryhstia remained a Caphirian territory. Both sides were happy as the north had the most inhabitants while the south had the most mining resources.
Satisfied with his own creation, Alexi returned to Caphiria to find everything different. His father had been diagnosed with pancreatic cancer and was on his deathbed. During Venio's seven-year absence, his father had picked another person to replace him as his heir and was planning to unravel his life's work. Venio spent the last years of his father's life attempting to make amends; his father told him that he would reinstate him as his heir if he promised to never abandon his duty. He agreed and days later his father passed away.
Alexandus became CEO on 17 March 1988 and would go on to take the company public later that year in one of the largest IPOs in modern history. He has remained Chief Executive since and has controlled the company for over three-decades. In that time, the company has quadrupled in value and become a staple in Caphiria, accounting for almost 1% of the entire GDP of Caphiria as well as employee well over a million people.